Kwara: Nupe, Yoruba in fresh row over boundary
21 March, 2010 01:28:00 By MICHAEL OLANREWAJU, Ilorin
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Just as the nation woke up to the reality of Jos genocide recently, Share community, an Igbomina Yoruba speaking people in the South Eastern part of Kwara State has raised fresh alarm over what they alleged as attempts by their neighbouring Tsaragi, Nupe speaking people to ethnicise the resolved boundary disputes between the two communities by the state Government.
It would be recalled that the boundary disputes between the two communities led to communal clash on Sunday and Monday, November 2-3, 2008. Lives and property worth millions of Naira were lost in the clash. Kwara State Government afterward set up an arbitration panel, while white paper on the resolution of the crisis has been issued. However, the Tsaragi community in a national daily, not Sunday Champion, alleged that they were being persecuted because they are not Yoruba who had deplored Odua Peoples Congress militancy to attack the Nupe in an Afenifere ethnic agenda. Thus, the People of Share community in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State have applauded the state for amicably resolving its age-long boundary dispute with its Tsaragi in Edu Local Government Area.
In a statement signed by the National President and National Secretary of the Share Descendants Union, Professor Suleiman Jamiu and Comrade S.O Ajayi respectively thanked, “the state government in resolving the dispute for not tinkering with the boundary of the two local governments of Edu and Ifelodun. The government brought out the boundary lines based on the 1976 description of the two LGAs.
“The fact was emphasized to the hearings of the representatives of the people of the two LGAs on January 14th, 2010 when the resolution was read to them. We humbly request the leadership of the Northern Union, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Northern Governors Forum as well as every well-meaning individuals and organizations in Nigeria to note these things for their records.
“This is because we are all in Kwara State, one of the 19 Northern States in Nigeria.”
The duo alleged that the Tsaragi people reportedly frowned against huge compensation awarded to their counterparts by the state government.
In their words: “For the Tsaragi people to describe the bringing out of the boundary line between Edu and Ifelodun LGAs based on the 1976 description of the two LGAs when they were created as curtailing Northern Nigeria boundary simply because the people of the two councils are Nupe and Yoruba respectively is a dangerous phenomenon capable of making the area a flashpoint.
“It is a known fact that Yoruba are in Northern Nigeria. Therefore, we find it difficult to understand their reason for describing the resolution of a boundary dispute between a Northern Nigeria Yoruba community and a Northern Nigeria Nupe community, all within Nigeria as curtailment of Northern Nigeria boundary lines.”