@flipside, i feel your pain my brother. Are you a Mshelia or a Gadzama ? . But seriously i know many like you, descendants of parents belonging to different faiths. Deep in your heart you wish things could go back to the way they were in the 80s when every body got along.

But you fail to acknowledge that religious inter marriages were also prominent with the rest of the country back then and not just the middlebelt. That's why people like Atiku , IBB and numerous others ended up with Christian wives, especially from the south east and south west region. I wonder why you think that the change in attitude is Middlebeltan in nature and not ' Nigerian'; which it actually is.

I dare say even the world we live in has changed. I remember when it was cool for Arab royalty to marry non Islamic caucasian women, i doubt if that's the case now. So, in essence, the world is a different place now, not just Nigeria and not just the middlebelt.

Any affinity that existed between middlebelt tribes and the core north back then has fast faded away leaving the reality of what we live in today. As things stand today, many persons from the middlebelt would rather work and live among people of similar background as a result of past experiences.

You ask whether if a middle belter who's Muslim would be spared if he finds himself in the midst of Christian middle belters in the event of a religious riot; my answer to that is that he stands a better chance of survival than if he were in the midst of core northern Muslims. I'd also like to add that riots that result in the killing of core northerners in the middle belt are almost always reactionary. They are caused by pogroms carried out by core northern thugs on innocent people.

I think part of southern bauchi and southern gombe could me merged together to form a new state in the middle belt.
Southern kaduna should have a state of their own in the middle belt.
The following states especially need to forge a common political identity
-plateau
-nasarawa
-taraba
-adamawa
-southern kaduna

edoyad:

@flipside, i feel your pain my brother. Are you a Mshelia or a Gadzama ? . But seriously i know many like you, descendants of parents belonging to different faiths. Deep in your heart you wish things could go back to the way they were in the 80s when every body got along.

But you fail to acknowledge that religious inter marriages were also prominent with the rest of the country back then and not just the middlebelt. That's why people like Atiku , IBB and numerous others ended up with Christian wives, especially from the south east and south west region. I wonder why you think that the change in attitude is Middlebeltan in nature and not ' Nigerian'; which it actually is.

I dare say even the world we live in has changed. I remember when it was cool for Arab royalty to marry non Islamic caucasian women, i doubt if that's the case now. So, in essence, the world is a different place now, not just Nigeria and not just the middlebelt.

Any affinity that existed between middlebelt tribes and the core north back then has fast faded away leaving the reality of what we live in today. As things stand today, many persons from the middlebelt would rather work and live among people of similar background as a result of past experiences.

You ask whether if a middle belter who's Muslim would be spared if he finds himself in the midst of Christian middle belters in the event of a religious riot; my answer to that is that he stands a better chance of survival than if he were in the midst of core northern Muslims.[b][/b] I'd also like to add that riots that result in the killing of core northerners in the middle belt are almost always reactionary. They are caused by pogroms  carried out by core northern thugs on innocent people.

Honestly i doubt that with my expereinces with the mentioned tribes especially.Did you know in the midst of the berom onces existed Berom Muslims.Today they have found refugee in the midst of the hausas and are better off/safer.Simply because the same kinsman has named them hausa over religion, gave them an ultimatum to convert or face death.Some have met there waterloo in the hands of this same people.Even interfaith were targetted.
I know of an uncle that refuse to feed a nephew because his sister a berom was married to a Hausa man.Same uncle clearly told them if the embrace christianity they would have food to eat,during the hardship of the crisis.Today they have left Jos for there fathers hometown despite having a sister that is a christian and having a berom tradition/blood.The uncle promised to offer food to the christian sister but would not do same for the others over religion.She pleaded and he said they have to accept christianity as a way out.When did compulsion to faith become the norm?This people share blood o!Really sad.What i am telling you is not in doubt.A minority tribe muslim is far better atleast in the hand of a Hausa fellow muslim by far.Vice verse.I also know it has not gotten that bad in some areas like my area sha.I am a Bwala for the record.
So how do i know that the berom mentality or south kaduna man will change his secret motive of thinking i am a traitor or hausa because am Muslim?That only a christian is a friend.Edoyad you can't dispute the fact that when roads are blocked and people are screened in southern kaduna or Berom areas,religion is all they try to find out.Before you say a word you must know verses or questions on christainity as a pass.Such that a Hausa man able to answer will walk while a MB that fails is instantly lynch,slaugthered and set on fire.Today Ibrahim Mantu is seen as an outcast in Plateau simply because he is Muslim.Did you know that Talen lost becasue of cheap lies that she got support from saudi or muslims regardless of origin, all done by Baba Jang and supporters.The Mosque in my area they have continued to vandalise even while its not in there area,So as a muslim how should i feel?Knowing on one hand its faith and another its about minorities?I could be killed over faith more likely than tribe in the MB and far north.So what do you think?
Also by your comment i take its is your opinion and your wish it never works out between us.I don't see why you have resloved that it can't be like before.Is it that you have no forgiveness or have you made a mortal enemy?How hypocrisy has dominated faith.So how do you choose to be Judge as a Christian.As a maker of peace,a supporter of recouncilation,a source of love and an example of harmony or you choose to be a source of division,destruction and hate?I take dialogue because after this madness we would still bite fingers and ask what it caused us to reach such chaos.I stick with dialogue and struggle for fairness and justice.Today we are led by our own kinsmen in power and we have leverage to dialogue.Unless our intention is confrontation.

Thanks guys.
Discussing religious intolerance, an issue politicians have refused even to acknowledge is the key to determining whether Nigeria will or will not be.

Flipside has raised several concerns about the importance of RELIGION in regional self-determination for the MIDDLE BELT and CORE NORTH and I would like to address them to the best of my ability:

First of all, I was not quite sure of your stand as a Southern Borno person. But based on your reaction and reading between the lines, If you are a BWALA, you, as well as the GADZAMAS, MSHELIAS, MSHELBWALAS, MALGWIS, etc, seem to consider yourself a MB person. Even if you bear a Hausa name and you are from this region, whether you are christian or Muslim would not change this view for me, except if your fellow Southern Borno people are of a different opinion

Secondly, it appears your main concerns are with BEROM and SOUTHERN KADUNA. You have based your reaction to how you would fare in the hands of these two peoples. But you have forgotten their reactions are usually based on their unfortunate experiences with HAUSA people, not Northern Muslims generally. However, in a situation of war or the struggle to survive in a place like Nigeria, it is likely that anyone with a religious or ethnic affinity with the Hausas is likely to suffer dire consequences.

It is okay to negotiate with the HAUSA on how to live. The IGBO, YORUBA and NIGER DELTA have called for a conference several times to SINCERELY discuss the bases for our existence. However, I believe that if you are going to discuss anything, your region, area or ethnicity must have a previously agreed cause of action to push forward for negotiation. That was why I felt this thread was important. You do not form an opinion when you reach the discussion table. For your information, the IGBO, YORUBA and NIGER DELTA at least have drafts or an unclear picture of what to discuss when such events take place. Those of us in the upper part of the country must not be left out. PLEASE, GIVE YOUR VIEW ON HOW THE COUNTRY SHOULD BE STRUCTURED AND HOW THE VARIOUS RELIGIONS MAY AGREE TO LIVE TOGETHER IN PEACE. Before we go to this negotiating table, we need to know whether you are with us or not so that we can articulate our stand together

I have said several times before on this thread that Christianity can not be the basis for the MIDDLE BELT because her social space is filled with people from all religions and even the HAUSA-FULANI and KANURI can be found in the MB. We can probably learn religious tolerance from the YORUBA, but it would be easier in a region autonomous from the HAUSA-FULANI. This is not to say I am against them, but I would like to say that it is much easier to relate and create a harmonious bloc in Nigeria free from the MAJOR groups. That was why I proposed that the KWARA / KOGI YORUBA should be moved to the main ODUDUWA bloc. Creation of a christian dominated Middle Belt zone is IMPOSSIBLE in my opinion

Seriously, provision of projects and federal appointees for the MB is not what we can dwell on. In Nigeria, apologists of government get recognized by dubious persons in power. This has however not translated into a healthy standard of living or a robust educational system  or good security for the people of MINNA, PANKSHIN and LANGTANG. The major projects sited are Kainji Dam, Ajaokuta Steel Company, Jos Steel Company. Where else could these companies have been located? The only major road is Lokoja-Abuja which is finally being given a look-in after many years. Several of these few projects have been abandoned. I used to know about a company in BIU called VEGFRU but I have not heard about it in ages. I do not know if it was a state or federal project but you make a point when you say there is not much federal presence

You say my 'agenda' goes beyond MINORITY RIGHTS and RELIGION. I agree totally with you. For me, what makes sense is a place where my children can live in peace and security, be able to come to BIU and ASKIRA for vacations on smooth 10-lane roads and enjoy economic prosperity while maintaining and developing strong moral and social values.

At the end of the day, all these crises, whether religious or ethnic, are because of humans fighting for resources in a country which does not yet have a stable polity. But we need an arrangements where these resources are properly harnessed for the common good and that is my personal mission. Not trying to sound like a saint, but I try to avoid political matters a lot and I only get interested when it is about the common good, not just for my people but also for neighbors I am going to live with

chima12:

I think part of southern bauchi and southern gombe could me merged together to form a new state in the middle belt.
Southern kaduna should have a state of their own in the middle belt.
The following states especially need to forge a common political identity
-plateau
-nasarawa
-taraba
-adamawa
-southern kaduna

I agree with you that the listed states have a lot in common within the larger middle belt. I however do not agree that the MB areas in Bauchi and Gombe are large enough to form another state.

@Karfe

I am glad you have told naijaking the truth. The eastern part of kogi to north-western part of anambra are Igala speaking people. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. We can look at the middle belt and say it is majority Nupe, Jukun, Igala, Yoruba, Fulani, Kanuri and yes even Hausa because of Niger state etc.

Now the point is these places we can call North central. Remember it is still the north geographically and nothing would change that. All that Odua, etc republic is not really the case now. Already majority of the leaders from the northern geopolitical zone are from the middle belt (from the beginning of our independence) Thus we can say no one is under any one right ? Thus I don't see the struggle of the separate identity.

DRANOEL:

@karfe

i didn't reduce the MB, i only stated whats visible. everywhere in the world you find smaller groups in the midst of larger ones. as for the small minority tribes in the core north you can't call them MB simply because they are christians.infact like earlier stated if they should be a separation then it should be the east central MB(igala,tiv,idoma)! the other category i.e s/kaduna,plateau,nasarawa etc could be separated simply based on recent religious instability not affirnity!

I believe you still understate the extent of this MB ideology especially in states like S/ Kaduna and Plateau. I feel by splitting the MB further you try to discredit the idea of having anything but a monolithic north which for me is not really workable based on present realities.

If I extend you understanding down south, the NIGER DELTA REGION would be too heterogeneous to be one autonomous territory, and you would split it between EDO, IJAW and CALABAR areas as a minimum. If you try to do this, the end result may be coming back to the 36 non-viable states we have today. and which we must restructure

PS. Lagos is viable at least

@karfe
your concept of the middle belt is all wrong!
you are trying to draw all northen minorities into a fairy tale region.
first off'as the name states "middle belt" i.e nigeria's central belt! that means abuja,plateau,nasarawa,kogi,benue. the fact that someone is a minority or christian up north doesn't make him a middle belter.

alj harem:

@Karfe

I am glad you have told naijaking the truth. The eastern part of kogi to north-western part of anambra are Igala speaking people. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND. We can look at the middle belt and say it is majority Nupe, Jukun, Igala, Yoruba, Fulani, Kanuri and yes even Hausa because of Niger state etc.

Now the point is these places we can call North central. Remember it is still the north geographically and nothing would change that. All that Odua, etc republic is not really the case now. Already majority of the leaders from the northern geopolitical zone are from the middle belt (from the beginning of our independence) Thus we can say no one is under any one right ? Thus I don't see the struggle of the separate identity.

I would advise you go through the whole thread and / or speak with those from the regions I proposed

talking about the niger delta, it seems you are not getting me.
you don't see some one from ogun being referred to as nigerdeltan neither do you see one from kogi being called nigerdeltan! so why would you pick some one from kebbi or borno simply because he's minority and christian and then refer to him as MB?

DRANOEL:

@karfe
your concept of the middle belt is all wrong!
you are trying to draw all northen minorities into a fairy tale region.
first off'as the name states "middle belt" i.e nigeria's central belt! that means abuja,plateau,nasarawa,kogi,benue. the fact that someone is a minority or christian up north doesn't make him a middle belter.

From my understanding, a belt has to go round your whole waist!

But seriously, I am not the inventor of this idea. You may want to check the original idea as proposed by UMBC before the Willink Commission in 1958. I can send you a copy. Proper anthropological studies were carried out and are reported. I am presenting my own understanding of this region and how it can be actualized. I do not know if you are from this region. Remember where we come from may probably guide our understanding or acceptance of the idea. I wish persons from all the places I included would come to this thread and lay a disclaimer to being included

karfe:

I would advise you go through the whole thread and / or speak with those from the regions I proposed

I am not against forming middle belt. I have followed the thread from the beginning and I must say middle belt is free to do whatever they want already ( every group has right to self determination). Goodluck brother at the end of the day we are still Nigerians.

DRANOEL:

talking about the niger delta, it seems you are not getting me.
you don't see some one from ogun being referred to as nigerdeltan neither do you see one from kogi being called nigerdeltan! so why would you pick some one from kebbi or borno simply because he's minority and christian and then refer to him as MB?

I tried to attached the Willink report document but it was too large. Please check the internet for a copy. Tell me when you review, although you may have gone through it before. [b]Flipside[/b]is from Southern Borno. He can send a disclaimer to all I have written but I have not seen it yet, He was only concerned about religious tolerance in such a region and a send a very long explanation. I also tried to tell him, and I am repeating to you again, its not simply about merging of christian groups, but it appears I am unable to convince you

let me give you a classic example. they is a tribe called etulo in benue state,they are right in the middle of tivland and number about 20,000. etulos are actually cousins of the idoma but because of their size and geographical location they have adapted to tivland and are considered tiv!
the point i'm trying to make is simple,if you consider those little ethnic groups up north with their land MB,then you should also consider the kanuris in lafia(and the land)  core north

alj harem:

I am not against forming middle belt. I have followed the thread from the beginning and I must say middle belt is free to do whatever they want already ( every group has right to self determination). Goodluck brother at the end of the day we are still Nigerians.

Thanks, brother. Just remember I do not seek a personal kingdom or a war front against the HFK. I was born and schooled there and belive they are probably the simplest people to get along with but historical and contemporary events have made me consider the best option that will benefit all Nigerians, including peoples from the Far North. Meanwhile, I think MBelters are the most accommodating people in Nigeria

ever asked yourself why the willinks report concerning northern minorities didnt work at all?
it was for the same reason of bundling every northern minority regardless of "region" into the middle belt. off course the end result was a map that extended up north dividing it in a funny way. at the end it wasn't difficult for the hausa/fulani to kick against it!
the closest thing to a MB region is the north central zone. it just needs a bit of adjusting

DRANOEL:

let me give you a classic example. they is a tribe called etulo in benue state,they are right in the middle of tivland and number about 20,000. etulos are actually cousins of the idoma but because of their size and geographical location they have adapted to tivland and are considered tiv!
the point i'm trying to make is simple,if you consider those little ethnic groups up north with their land MB,then you should also consider the kanuris in lafia(and the land)  core north

Now you are beginning to understand me. I know the Etulo in Katsina-Ala. Of course they are distantly related to Idomas, but today they have been tiv-ized, if there is any word like that. They have blended in with the tiv and bear tiv names. Instances of these abound. Maguzawa are hausa who were still practising their traditional religion after the jihad. Today, some of them have become christian. That will not make me include them in Middle belt

If you see posts from our fellow posters, you will read about Jarawa, Warjawa, in Bauchi State. These guys are so into the hausa culture that it would be meaning less including them in MB. There are several minorites in Yobe who have become hausanized. I did not include them. Do you know these people have christians among them?  For the Kanuri you mentioned in Lafia hardly speak any Kanuri again! I stand to be corrected. Maybe I am wrong

Bottom line is this: I believe a huge part of our national crisis is due to our structure. Even before independence, it was argued that the Northern region was 75% in area and over 50% in population of the country. Mine is an attempt to collate what I can regarding the Middle Belt cause, and also add my personal convictions. I truly value your opinion and I wish we could get the opinions of others. I believe we all want Nigeria to grow. Remember, its just an opinion. You can chose to correct information I tried to give in a simple form

DRANOEL:

ever asked yourself why the willinks report concerning northern minorities didnt work at all?
it was for the same reason of bundling every northern minority regardless of "region" into the middle belt. off course the end result was a map that extended up north dividing it in a funny way. at the end it wasn't difficult for the hausa/fulani to kick against it!
the closest thing to a MB region is the north central zone. it just needs a bit of adjusting

Please adjust the NC zone in a more workable arrangement and let us see your proposal so that others and I can comment

Willinks report available here: http://www.adakaboro.org/thewillinkcomm

@karfe

i've made it clear to you that they are two sets of groups in the middle belt,the ones who are totally different from the hausa/fulani(infact they tend towards south) and the ones who have a slight affinity to the hausa but due to years of oppression and ethnic clashes now seek a seperate identity

DRANOEL:

let me give you a classic example. they is a tribe called etulo in benue state,they are right in the middle of tivland and number about 20,000. etulos are actually cousins of the idoma but because of their size and geographical location they have adapted to tivland and are considered tiv!
the point i'm trying to make is simple,if you consider those little ethnic groups up north with their land MB,then you should also consider the kanuris in lafia(and the land)  core north

I don't see why this is so bad. It is in fact common in Nigeria. Modakeke is populated by Oyo refugees. My own paternal ancestors were Ijesha, yet migrated to Ekitiland and today we are considered Ekiti.

At any rate, you'll never get completely clean borders. There will always be someone on one side who wishes he were on the other. However, this doesn't mean that the overall goal of a relatively harmonious region cannot be achieved.

ekt_bear:

you'll never get completely clean borders

ekt_bear:

overall goal of a relatively harmonious region

Thanks. You expressed this much better than me especially with these two lines!

@karfe
regions are created because of affinity not religion.
the minority tribes in borno,bauchi,yobe,gombe,adamawa,kebbi etc have more affinity with their bigger cousins.they have absolutely nothing in common with say the idoma'tiv'igala! so why should you now seperate them simply because they are minority or christian? being realistic if you put minorities in the states mentioned above with the tiv,igala,idoma,hausa,fulani and kanuri man you will easily seperate the idoma,tiv and igala and consider the minorities above mentioned with the hausa,fulani and kanuri as one! the whole middlebelt struggle was started by the central east(northern) minorities "tiv'idoma'igala" the beroms joined much later.
you will notice that idoma and igala have traces of southern heritage while the tivs were probably the last group to migrate to present day nigeria.these three(including the smaller groups within them)had no influence from the hausa/fulani. in contrast the minorities from borno,adamawa,bauchi,yobe,gombe,kebbi had a lot of influence from the hausa/fulani/kanuri while those in s/kaduna,plateau,nasarawa and taraba had slight influence from HFK! the nupes in niger were part and parcel of the HFK ruling class.

TO THE MIDDLE-BELT--A WAKE UP CALL.

Middle-belters need to rise up and chart a different cause from northwest and north east.The middle-belters should be encouraged to break-out from the york of hausa/fulani domination as this will do them a lot of good and also it will be in the interest of the SE/SS/SW too.This boko haram crises is looking like one of the major catalyst that will lead to the break-up of nigeria.The middle-belt governors forum should come alive to articulate on the way forward for peoples/tribes in the middle-belt.Due to the middle-belt region being vast in size and diverse in ethnicity,there is that likelihood of middle-belt attempts at asserting their political independence from the hausa/fulani being sabotaged from within.Therefore for a start,the people/political representatives/elites and elders of plateau,benue,southern kaduna,taraba should champion the cause .These four states should see themsleves as the core-middle belt states and work on carving out a common political ideology for the middle-belt.States like niger,kwara,kogi should be left out of this middle-belt political awakening for now because they have a high potential/likelihood of sabotaging the middle-belt cause.Once the alliance between the four states mentioned above has become strong enough,any other middle-belt state wishing to join them could be allowed.But first,[plateau,taraba,benue,southern kaduna]should see middle-belt political/ideological independence as their own project and they should not fail in accomplishing it.
These four middle-belt states mentioned above need to give utmost importance to security of their peoples/tribes and protect the right of middle-belt indeginous peoples/tribes to live and their freedom to practice any religion of their choice[personal choice].They need an enforcement arm to handle security matters just like other regions do.A look at nigerias geo-political regions shows that various regions have security/militant groups to protect the people of those regions with the exception of middle-belt[ MB].
SS -- MEND
SE --MASSOB
SW--OPC
NE ---Boko Haram
NW---Boko Haram
MB --?
The absence of a security/militant arm to protect the interest of the middle-belt tribes/peoples is the reason why sectarian violence against the middle-belters in Plateau and Benue state has occurred and re--occurred in recent times.It should interest you to know that any acts of religious/sectarian violence instigated by hausa/fulani in middle--belt states ie benue,plateau is actually an act of trespass by boko-haram into another mans territory.You cant hear of OPC trespassing into the SS or MEND tresspassing into SE to cause harvock.But the case of middle-belt is one in which Boko-haram,founded,funded and armed by the political elites and state governments of NW and NE now stray and exert influence outside their zones causing harvock in plateau state and possibly benue state.The middle-belt states need to form,fund and arm their own militant group.All the militant groups mentioned above are being funded by their state governments.
Political re-allignment of the middle-belt is necessary in view of a possible break-up of nigeria.South Sudan,with the aid of america has just broken away from Sudan.America now views islamic fundamentalism/terrorism as its number one threat unlike previously when the perceived threat was communism.This is why rather than america support the north sudanese ruling junta even when the north sudanese/arabs do protect their economic interest,they choose to support South Sudan to gain independence.With South Sudan independence,a line has been drawn on the african map bringing to a halt the well known arab/islamic agenda of speading islam[with force if necessary] through central africa down to southern africa.
The next battle field [arab/islam vs black african/christian ]is already playing itself out in the middle-belt.To the middle-belters,when the line is drawn,on which side of the line do you want to be?Is it above the line---hausa/fulani domination or below the line---independence/freedom?
It is important for the middle-belt to separate/set themselves apart from the hausa/fulani expecially at these trying moments when the west and america seem to be under the impression that nigeria is made up of muslim north and christian south.
Southern Kaduna should intensify efforts to have a state of their own,and the emergent Southern Kaduna state will then be part of middle-belt geo-political zone.The people of southern gombe and southern bauchi should also work towards merging these two areas to form one state which will also be part of the middle-belt.That way.Southern Kaduna and Southern Gombe/Southern Bauchi break away from NW and NE respectively.
At the end of the day,if the middle-belt gets it right,the line will be drawn with most parts of the middle-belt below the line---[freedom from hausa-fulani domination/independence] and any issues with Boko Haram,maitassin,jibwis or whatever name the hausa/fulani terrorist groups will adopt will be left for NW and NE [arewaland] to deal with or dine with.

OP
Thanks for coming up with this eye-opener and clarion call for self-actualisation by the MB of Nigeria.

First, I have never liked that name "North Central" for the MB because the MB are not geographically in the centre of the North but in the centre of Nigeria. Therefore the correct nomenclature would have been "Central Nigeria" or "Middle Belt of Nigeria". I feel the Hausa/Fulani were just bent on using that region as a tool for political weight that's why they tagged it "North Central" to make it part of the North by fire by force.

Now that the situations on ground have called for immediate independence of the MB people, I want the MB states to denounce the name "North Central" and go for "Central Nigeria". The MB should opt out of the so-call 19 Northern States Governors Forum or Arewa Consultative Forum. These organisations are subtle ways in which the H/F continue to hold onto the MB as political ally while in the actual fact they are mere tools to be used and dumped by the H/F.

Like the poster above me rightly observed, it is only the MB that has no militant group, which is very necessary in the contemporary Nigeria for self identity.

SS -- MEND
SE --MASSOB
SW--OPC
NE ---Boko Haram
NW---Boko Haram
MB --?

The UMBF should make hay while the sun shines and establish themselves as a formidable political group with a true self identity. This umbrella body can now have a political stake and identity in the present political turpsy-turvy in Nigeria and should things go hey-wire, can easily declare autonomy and have a solid foundation for further poliitical agitations/growth.

jamace:

OP
Thanks for coming up with this eye-opener and clarion call for self-actualisation by the MB of Nigeria.

First, I have never liked that name "North Central" for the MB because the MB are not geographically in the centre of the North but in the centre of Nigeria. Therefore the correct nomenclature would have been "Central Nigeria" or "Middle Belt of Nigeria". I feel the Hausa/Fulani were just bent on using that region as a tool for political weight that's why they tagged it "North Central" to make it part of the North by fire by force.

Now that the situations on ground have called for immediate independence of the MB people, I want the MB states to denounce the name "North Central" and go for "Central Nigeria". The MB should opt out of the so-call 19 Northern States Governors Forum or Arewa Consultative Forum. These organisations are subtle ways in which the H/F continue to hold onto the MB as political ally while in the actual fact they are mere tools to be used and dumped by the H/F.

Like the poster above me rightly observed, it is only the MB that has no militant group, which is very necessary in the contemporary Nigeria for self identity.
The UMBF should make hay while the sun shines and establish themselves as a formidable political group with a true self identity. This umbrella body can now have a political stake and identity in the present political turpsy-turvy in Nigeria and should things go hey-wire, can easily declare autonomy and have a solid foundation for further poliitical agitations/growth.

Very intelligent contribution.

This thread has tried to identify all the areas which may or may not be part of the MIDDLE BELT (CENTRAL) REGION

Non-Yoruba Kwara
Non-Yoruba Kogi
Benue
Niger
Nasarawa
Plateau
Taraba
Adamawa
Southern Kaduna
Southern Kebbi
Southern Bauchi
Southern Gombe
Southern Borno (not sure)

It would be useful if MB persons, and other Nigerians could identify which regions should be removed from the list or retained. It would also be useful to hear the views of Hausa-Fulani and Kanuri persons who come from these areas or from the Far North

For those from the Yoruba parts of Kwara and Kogi, please state if these areas should be part of the MB

karfe:

This thread has tried to identify all the areas which may or may not be part of the MIDDLE BELT (CENTRAL) REGION

Non-Yoruba Kwara
Non-Yoruba Kogi
Benue
Niger
Nasarawa
Plateau
Taraba
Adamawa
Southern Kaduna
Southern Kebbi
Southern Bauchi
Southern Gombe
Southern Borno (not sure)

It would be useful if MB persons, and other Nigerians could identify which regions should be removed from the list or retained. It would also be useful to hear the views of Hausa-Fulani and Kanuri persons who come from these areas or from the Far North

For those from the Yoruba parts of Kwara and Kogi, please state if these areas should be part of the MB

Could you put these places you are talking about here in a map so that we can visualize how realistic your fantasies are?

karfe:

This thread has tried to identify all the areas which may or may not be part of the MIDDLE BELT (CENTRAL) REGION

Non-Yoruba Kwara
Non-Yoruba Kogi
Benue
Niger
Nasarawa
Plateau
Taraba
Adamawa
Southern Kaduna
Southern Kebbi
Southern Bauchi
Southern Gombe
Southern Borno (not sure)

It would be useful if MB persons, and other Nigerians could identify which regions should be removed from the list or retained. It would also be useful to hear the views of Hausa-Fulani and Kanuri persons who come from these areas or from the Far North

For those from the Yoruba parts of Kwara and Kogi, please state if these areas should be part of the MB

Who come from? I'd prefer "settled" in the area, but then again, according to the constitution a settler is an indigene if they chose to be so.

Tsiya:

Could you put these places you are talking about here in a map so that we can visualize how realistic your fantasies are?

Fantasy or not, I have laid my cards on the table. You do not need a map to know these places, except you are not in favour of a MB region

edoyad:

Who come from? I'd prefer "settled" in the area, but then again, according to the constitution a settler is an indigene if they chose to be so.

Yes, settled since the Jihad in some places, and then more recently in some others. But they are here now, so we have to work with what we have at the moment.

I have no problems with people organizing and actualizing their quest for freedom, and as you can read from my previous post, I have a very good understand of Northern Nigeria. However, I realized long time ago certain ambitions are going to remain a dream.

My concern is you still haven't clearly define your concept of MB. Is your middle belt based on (1) religious identity: Muslim - North and Christians (MB), (2) Ethnicity: Hausa, Fulani, Kanuri - North and Everyone else- MB.

These are the fundamental differences in Northern Nigeria.

I have no doubt that your current proposal is not only unacceptable to many people, but very very very very very unworkable. You have to be realistic in your ambitions.