Claim: A Facebook user (@calidvoiceeco) shared a video alleging the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) spokesperson, Abubakar Jiddere, claimed that all natural resources in Northern Nigeria belong exclusively to Northerners and that other regions or states should not benefit from them.
Verdict: Misleading. We found no evidence that the NEF spokesperson made the statement.
Full Text
A Facebook user (@calidvoiceeco) alleged in a video (archived here) that the Northern Elders Forum spokesperson, Abubakar Jiddere, claimed that all natural resources in Northern Nigeria belong exclusively to Northerners.
The video, which captured a picture of the Northern Elders spokesperson, tagged the Northern Elders as “animals in human form” for the said comment.
This was contained in an image overlaid on the video. The Text on the overlaying image read, “BREAKING: Northern Elders declare that all natural resources in Northern Nigeria belong exclusively to the North, insisting that other region or state should benefit from them….”
As of Aug. 12, 2026, the video had gained 266,000viewers, 2,900 likes, 852 shares, 875 comments, and 207 saves on the platform.
Reacting to the claim, @Bala Maikarauka wrote, “They are not Northern leaders but rather Fulani leaders representing their ethnic group.”
Another user, @polycarp sunday, commented, “They are not animals. They know what they are doing together with the British Government. All resources in their states belong to them while petroleum in the south is for everybody. Some do not drink alcohol but receive VAT from alcohol.”
Given the nature of the claim and its impact on public perception of the country’s natural resources exploration and refining, DUBAWA decided to investigate it.
Verification
We extracted keyframes from the video and ran reverse image searches.
The searches led to a Guardian report published in January, 2026, with the headline “NEF urges Northern leaders to speak out on gold refinery”
In the report, the spokesperson expressed concerns over “locating Nigeria’s gold refinery in Lagos, while gold is mined from Northern soil.”
He said it is not a policy error. It is not an oversight. It is a deliberate act of economic dispossession.
“It strips value addition from Northern communities, exports opportunity to the already privileged centre, and condemns the source regions to poverty, unemployment, and perpetual insecurity,” he said.
Punch Newspapers also reported that the “Northern Elders Forum slams Lagos gold refinery plan,” in its Jan. 22, 2026 publication.
A video, archived here, also provided insight into what the spokesperson said in the group’s official statement.
He questioned why a gold refinery meant to process resources found across Northern Nigeria is being taken to Lagos, arguing that the region deserves a stake in processing its own wealth.
“The kind of gold we have is rare; in Zamfara, Kebbi, Niger, Kaduna states, in Arewa region where this gold is found, you only need to dig three feet,” he said.
He questioned why the refinery could not be sited in the North, adding: “In the whole Northern Nigeria, there is no single place that the refinery could be sited, but instead it was taken to Lagos?”
The above statement revealed that while the forum addressed the location of a gold-refining company in Lagos, the context was not about general ownership and total control of the resources, as claimed.
Responding to the forum, BusinessDay reported that Segun Tomori, the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, said,
“At no point did Dr Dele Alake state that the Federal Government owns or established a gold refinery in Lagos. The refinery in question is a private venture, and the government cannot dictate to a private investor business where to locate its business.”
In a statement published by 21st Century Chronicles in January 2026, the Northern organisation distanced itself from assertions that the region’s resources belong exclusively to Northern Nigeria.
Interestingly, in a 2025 statement published by Punch Newspaper, NEF said that 44 solid minerals are deposited across more than 500 identified locations in the region, underscoring its emphasis on developing those resources rather than claiming exclusive legal ownership.
Conclusion
While the NEF commented against locating a gold refinery in Lagos, it did not say that all natural resources in Nigeria belonged exclusively to the North or that no other region should benefit. The claim is therefore misleading.
This fellowship is implemented by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) with support from the European Union.