Taraba land dispute: Tiv community rejects monarch's media propaganda, calls for fair treatment

From Godwin Agia, Jalingo

The Tiv community in Bali Local Government area of Taraba state on Thursday refuted the media reports attributed to the Chief of Jibu Chiefdom, Alhaji Abubakar Mahmoud, claiming that he relocated Dugwer residents to a new site to resolve a longstanding land dispute.

Zaki David Gbaa, the traditional leader of Tiv in Bali and Chairman, of the Taraba State Council of Tiv Traditional Leaders, refuted the claim in an interview with journalists, describing it as diversionary and aimed at deceiving the people and impeding the investigation ordered by the Governor Agbu Kefas.

The Kur Jibu, Alhaji Abubakar Mahmoud had on Monday purportedly handed over the new land in the Utsuwa-Daa area of Bali to the people of Dugwer, saying the move would settle the protracted land dispute between the Tiv and Hausa communities residing in the area.

But in an interview with journalists, the Chief of Tiv pointed out that the Governor, in a recent meeting regarding the land dispute, instructed the Chairman of the Bali Local Government Council, Hon. Aboki Dakka, to compile a report on all land issues in the area and submit to him for further action and wondered why the Kur Jibu was acting in defiance to the Governor's directive.

"I have submitted my report to the Chairman as directed by the Governor and I think the best thing to do is to wait for the Governor to go through the reports and take a decision.

"The land in question is over 500 hectares and the new land he is saying he has given to the people is less than eight hectares, how would the people farming on 500 hectares of land now confine themselves to eight hectares?

"To put the record straight, the Court of Appeal Yola Division in 2019 ruled in our favour and handed over the land to us as original owners and we have the court proceedings. The Kur Jibu allocated the land to the immediate past Governor of the state, Arc. Darius Ishaku, throwing up fresh controversy.

"We are a peace-loving people and would not accept anything that will throw up fresh crisis in the area. We want to call on Governor Agbu Kefas who has already waded into the issue to expedite action for the peaceful resolution of the issue," he appealed.

Gbaa said tension was also mounting in Zuddai community following the seizure of farmlands in seven village subdivisions belonging to the Tiv community, the matter he said he has reported to the Kur Jibu who simply said they have resolved that nobody should stay in the affected areas.