‘Crave for land causes conflict in northern Nigeria’

Speaking as guest lecturer at a seminar organized by Stefanos Foundation in Abuja yesterday, Turaki said, “The Social Reformers [colonial government and religion] did something to our land. They changed the definition of our land for them to impose themselves – I call them the empire builders.“Before the empire builder comes in to build an […]

Speaking as guest lecturer at a seminar organized by Stefanos Foundation in Abuja yesterday, Turaki said, “The Social Reformers [colonial government and religion] did something to our land. They changed the definition of our land for them to impose themselves – I call them the empire builders.
“Before the empire builder comes in to build an empire, one, he has to change the ethnicity of the people, he has to change the land.
“And he has to change religion and culture of the people.
 “All that we hear as the root of our ethno-religious problem turn to be based on economy, politics – they don’t go deep enough.
“There’re deep historical roots to the ethno-religious crises that have engulfed northern Nigeria for the past decades.”
The professor said these crises can be tackled if the people can identify their common ancestry, values and look at the social political outcomes of the work of the empire builders that have changed societies and generated structures of conflicts.
Mark Lipdo, Programme Cordinator of Stefanos Foundation said the security of minorities groups in Nigeria are not adequately protected and the minorities are not united to voice out and tell their stories.
“The situation is bad. The minorities in southern Borno particularly in Gwoza local government are living in Cameroun and no one says anything about them.
“The people in Konduga, when they were running four days ago, they said they didn’t know whether they would survive.
“At the end of the day, 75 percent of the whole community has been burnt down. Over 50 people were killed.”
Alan Craig who represented the sponsor of the conference, UK-based Gatestone Institute said the crises in northern Nigeria ought to be of global concern.
Forty-five participants were drawn from 15 states – three from each state representing states with ethnic minorities in northern Nigeria.
The meeting which focused on Minority Interest Rights will make a presentation to the federal government.