Tiv people seek to end the killings in Taraba, Plateau, and Benue States, and disapprove of agitation for breaking up these states

Nigerian Tiv people in Taraba State are worried about the murders that are currently occurring across the country, as well as the various groups that are advocating for the country to be divided.

The group called on the authorities to take swift action to put an end to all kinds of violence, such as acts of destruction of property and the promotion of separatism.

Within a few hours of the celebration of the feast of St. Augustine by the Tiv catholic community in Jalingo Diocese, communiqués distributed to the media practitioners in the area reported that secessionist agitators have become apparent and necessitated leaders to respond before reaching a point of no return.

This ethnic group, in unequivocal terms, condemns all forms of killings, criminality, and marginalization of minorities in the country.

We say our country, Nigeria, is going through a very turbulent time. A metaphorical representation of this quote is: “Africa is gradually being turned into a killing field, and the death of only a small number of people no longer matters, and this is not worthy of being reported in the media.”

According to them, Jos, the Plateau State capital and Benue State, Nigeria’s second most populous state, have both witnessed recent murders, and this led them to assert that,

“The attacks on our churches, recent massacres and retaliatory attacks in Jos, Benue, and mass abductions of innocent and helpless school children in various regions of the country, in particular, are specially deplored.”

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They were also concerned about the overall insecurity in the country, but they also expressed concern for the government of Taraba State because they believe the State has been afflicted by interminable violence since 2014.

While offering condolences to Central Zone families for the loss of livelihood, President-elect Tiv Catholic Community of Jalingo Diocese’s Denis Hembaor, President St. Augustine’s Tiv Catholic Community, and elected Member of Parliament Denis Hembaor expressed sadness because “since 2014, most families in the central zone of the state have lost their source of livelihood and have been denied access to their farmlands.”

According to the communique, anyone who attempts to return to their homes in certain places would be inviting death.

Many residents in the Southern parts of the state say that they were forced to reside in IDP camps without hope of returning to their ancestral land during a crisis that allegedly occurred between 2019 and 2020.

In a letter addressed to the State Government, they requested that it redouble its efforts in resolving the crisis and creating adequate security arrangements for the safe return of everyone displaced by the emergency, including those who have returned to their homes in Wukari, Ibi, Donga, Takum, Gassol, and Bali LGAs.