₦airaland Forum

As seen on Facebook page of an Igala Chief

The Solemn Convenant of The Middle Belt.

On various platforms people have been asking us, What is the Middle Belt? What are its geographical boundaries and who and who make up this community? Let me set the records straight today.

As a territory, the Middle Belt is everything outside the core Sharia North, from Southern Borno to Southern Adamawa, Southern Kebbi, Southern Gombe, Southern Bauchi, Southern Kaduna and Southern Niger, to Plateau, Nasarawa, FCT, Kogi, Benue, Taraba, and Kwara. We make up a motley of clans that are ethnographically of Niger-Congo, Bantu, Chadic and Nilo-Ethiopic extraction. We are the descendants of the great Nok civilisation that descended from ancient Egypt and the Nilotic cultures of Meroe and Kush. We invented iron smelting before the ancient Greeks and Romans. We are the descendants of the acephalus and Republican Tiv people, various kingdoms such as the Apa, Goemai Igala and the warrior Kwararafa peoples who conquered Kano for the better part of two centuries.

We were never conquered by the Fulani Jihad. Our forefathers defeated them at the famed Battle of Ushongo 1817 in the Benue Valley. Our civilisation is no less illustrious than the greatest on the continent of Africa. We are a rather quiet and shy people, unlike all these empty gongs and noisome pestilences all over Nigeria. But the fact that we are a humble people doesn't mean we can be taken for fools. Yiu under-estimate us to your mortal peril. Our ancestors were a proud and warlike race.

Warriors do not make noise. Only women do (apologies for being politically incorrect). Anybody that was never conquered by Fulani Jihad and/or does not subscribe to the hegemony of the Caliphate, is a part of the Middle Belt. We have done our ethnographic and geographical surveys.

The Middle Belt is easily the most populous and the largest region by landmass in Nigeria, with an estimated 40 million people and 300,000 sq. Km. We have a lush green Savannah, with the most variegated climate of any region. Jos and Mambilla Plateaus are virtually Europe in Africa, with their near-temperate climate and flora and fauna. We can grow nearly all temperate fruits and vegetables in our region. The district of Bokkos in Plateau State alone can feed the whole of West Africa with potatoes. We can also do world scale ranching and all forms of animal husbandry in the Middle Belt. We have the richest farmlands and we are easily the bread basket of Nigeria. We feed virtually the whole country. Benue State alone can rival Israel and California in exporting citrus to world markets.

The Benue Valley is extraordinarily blessed. That's why the Fulanis covet it and the entire Middle Belt so murderiusly. The largest rivers criss-cross our territory, meeting at the mystical city of Lokoja and flowing through Asaba and Onitsha -- through Biafra land -- into the sea. No desert, no Sahel. Our people are predominantly Christian, with some Muslim converts and Traditional worshippers. If you are to fight us on a level ground, you will know what our people are made of.

The Fulani are cowardly. They come by stealth of night, under cover of the armed forces and a federal government we elected, slaughtering unarmed and defenceless women, children and peasants. The brand of Islam that some of our people converted to is the tolerant and humane type, as found in Yoruba land. Our land is full of solid minerals. Before discovery of the oil people are boasting about today, for almost a century, tin mining on the Jos Plateau sustained the British colonial economy. There was electricity in Bukuru, Jos, long before the city of London had it, thanks to the ingenuity of the Amalgamated Tin Mining conglomerate.

Today, we put the whole world on notice: The Middle Belt has woken up. When our latter-day supporters of APC are ready to fight their next civil war which they have planned meticulously over the years, let it be known that we have ordered our people throughout the length and breadth of the Middle Belt, on strict instruction, never to be a part of it, as we stupidly did in 1967-70. We foolishly served as the foot soldiers of the Caliphate, to our bitter shame and regret! We lost almost a million of our people fighting our brethren the Ndigbo; fighting for a Fulani Caliphate that, unbeknownst to us, considered us to be their sworn enemies and contemptible chattel slaves all along. Ndigbo, we are on our knees, begging you to forgive us for the sins we have committed against you against God and against Humanity. Please, forgive us our monumental follies of yesteryears. You are our Umunna across the Great River. We swear by the graves of our venerable warrior ancestors, the graves of the millions of your and our people who perished in Biafra land, and we swear by everything we hold most sacred, that we shall never stand against you in life or in death. Never again!

To you, the Fulani genocidaires out there, you are on your own on that next civil war that you are planning against the glorious people that are said to be the Jews of Africa. We shall never be a part of it. Instead, they will be our allies in war and in peace. And we shall see how you will ever gain a free passage again through our territory to go and commit genocide in the South this time around! The Pharisees in Judea threw a tantrum when Jesus the Christ the Holy One of Israel, healed the blind beggar on a Sabbath day. The blind man could not care a hoot. All he said was, " I once was blind, but now I see!"

Let the whole world know it today: We were blind once, but now we can see. We shall never again be used as canon fodder to fight our brethren in the South. We shall serve no other gods other than Jehovah El-Elyon, Jehovah Tsidkenu, Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Elohim. Jesus Christ of Nazereth is the King of the Middle Belt. O Shepherd of Israel, I die for love! The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob shall be our God forever! We commit the sacred lands of our ancestors to His divine protection. This is our solemn Covenant. It is Him alone that we will serve, even unto the ending of the worlds.

Monogamy:


To cut things short, he is currently countryless

Correct

The Stateless Nigerian Professor of South Africa

Nigerian Edwin Ijeoma, (ex)Professor of Economics at the University of Fort Hare South Africa (SA), has lost his South African citizenship and expelled from the country because he lied about his marital status while applying for SA citizenship years ago. He married a SA lady while being already married in Nigeria. Bigamy is against the laws of SA.

With a PhD obtained from SA, it is unclear why Ijeoma would need a SA lady to become a citizen of that country. Most countries who rely on immigrants to drive one or more aspects of their development have a facilitated quota system for highly qualified applicants, starting with permanent residency. So, at face value, he should not have needed to marry a native to become a citizen. His high academic qualifications should have spoken for him on their merit. But who knows what else the public does not know about the matter. It may yet be a case of the more you look the less you see.

To make matters worse, his woes were compounded by another error of judgement he made. Put parabolically, he burned down his father's thatch house before erecting a mansion for him: he denounced his Nigerian citizenship upon becoming a SAn. As a non-native born, it was very thoughtless to have denounced his original citizenship. However, to be fair, it is plausible that SA did not permit dual citizenship at the time he obtained his citizenship; hence he had to choose between Nigeria and SA. But the country does now permit dual citizenship, I believe. Otherwise, if Ijeoma denounced his citizenship because of Biafra, a little bit of circumspection could have informed him that he could have just put his Nigerian passport inside a locker or hang it on his wall as a souvenir (rather than denounce it) until Biafra materializes and gives him a different password.

Anyways, these two misdeeds have now rendered him stateless. Where does he go to now? I guess the Nigerian authorities will have a big party humiliating him if he approaches them for reinstatement of his citizenship. This is a novelty in Nigeria and it is unclear how a court in Nigeria would rule if he tries to sue to regain his citizenship. Anyways, the deeds are done and I hope he has learned his lesson.

That being said, what he did must have brought shame to Nigerians in SA. But the good thing is that for every Ijeoma, there are hundreds of other Nigerian professors in that country. For example, Prof Nzewi (HOD of Public Administration in Ijeoma's former Department at Fort Hare); Linus Opara (Distinguished professor of Food Science and Technology, University of Stellenbosch); and Damian Onwudiwe (professor of Chemistry, North West University Gauteng), to mention a few. These folks will continue to fly the flag and, hopefully, keep upholding the laws of their adopted country.

vannessa7:
Says who, south west has very fertile soil that supports various types of food crops, take a tour of our farms and see, this will just boost agriculture in the south because our farmers will have more demand for their produce and overtime large scale production. It's the south east that should be jittery because of low production of food, but your people know how to run to the south west Sha,
South west action takers, you call us cowards but we are achieving what you have not been able to achieve with years of chest beating, we made the north realise we will not accept their excesses, a feat that the south east can never achieve in hundred years,

You are fighting the wrong battle. The SE is not the enemy here. Face north

goxx:
They are malnourished because they are poor, not because of lack of food. For example, the US has the best institutions of learning in the world, but statistics show that Nigerian Immigrants are more Educated than them.
Do you even know what food Security is? Even with their food, Nigeria as a whole doesn't have enough. Una just sabi fight with una keyboard. Most of una doesn't even know how to hold a Hoe.

You don't need a hoe to farm in the 21st century. No country is 100% food secure, not the US, not Netherlands. Nigerian immigrants who come to the US are already preselected by the system to be the best of the best from Nigeria. They have to do GRE, SAT, TOEFL etc and then hustle for visa - those are all smart achievements that just only 1% of the Nigerian student population can accomplish. You are comparing apples and oranges. Compare Nigerian students in Nigeria with American students in America.

Imagine carrying a bucket of water to the 5th floor. Ground floor must be hot cake in Onitsha, especially in houses without water supply.

T9ksy:
......whilst Nigeria is being ruled by Cow-herders!!

You used to love everything Hausa-Fulani and hate everything Igbo. What happened now?

Between not eating tomatoes, onions, beans & beef, and being kidnapped, killed and have your land stolen by Fulani terrorists masquerading as herdsmen, which do you prefer?

Mikecold:
When they say export hope it's Not the same poor Niger and Chad who are looking to sell their own they are referring to

Hahah! This is a sucker punch. Fear poor north

Dong2:
Good post

correct person

donbachi:
who owns the goods and trucks dat were blocked?the north.who will count losses?the north..make we hear word abeg.

Yes, the north would lose more. It's only a discomfort for the south which they will overcome with time.

donbachi:
Who will suffer loss?na still dem..what if youths from the south should block those truck load of onions,yams and cows.from entering..all their good will perish and livestock dead..and the northerners will be on their knees begging.

The north already blocked them. Which one again you wan block?

Copied from a friend's Facebook page.

Of northerners stopping food supply to the South.

There are videos of northerners blocking food trucks destined for the south. This is good for everyone, as much as it is bad for everyone.

The good aspect for the south is that necessity is the mother of invention.Faced with limited food options, Southerners will be propelled to start a more intensive agricultural production, including of meat and fish. I have in the past hammered on this topic here on FB and elsewhere. With science and technology you don't need millions of hectares to produce food. You need just the right knowledge and inputs for intensive production on the land that you have.

The good aspect for the north is that millions of Almajiris roaming northern streets and the good northerners in IDP camps who are victims of Boko Haram would now have enough food to eat.

The bad aspect for the South is that there will be short term gastronomic and culinary discomfort. You will have to cook and eat food without some items for a while.

The bad aspect for the north is that they produce to sell. If no buyer, then they are faced with even more crushing poverty (northern Nigeria is already the poorest place in the world. All thanks to the North, Nigeria surpassed India in the number of poor people per capita a few years ago). There is no agricultural subsidy in Nigeria. They may take the produce to neighboring countries, but they'll pay import duties to such countries, I suppose. Another big bad news for the north is that the two fertilizer plants in Nigeria are located in the south. Even the upcoming Dangote Fertilizer production plant is located in the south. Fertilizers are transported from the South to the North via trucks. Southerners can block trucks too. The North can't produce for commercial purposes without fertilizer. Period.

That being said, may we remind ourselves what food produce is coming to the South from the North. Tomato, onions, groundnut, pepper, beef, a specific goat breed, yam, cabbage and a couple others. Now, what among those produce above does a human need to survive? Perhaps only yam, because it is caloric. In reality, the major staples in the south are southern-produced produce, including cassava, plantain, corn, palm oil, reasonable quantities of yams, and different types of leafy vegetables.

Chicken farms are all over the country, producing meat and eggs. Rice farms are all over the country. The rest of chicken and rice consumed in Nigeria are imported via the southern and northern borders. Fish is mostly imported. Therefore, no region holds the monopoly of chicken, rice, and fish. Beans come mostly from Niger Republic (but I will concede beans to the north, since they can block the trucks bringing it in).

The rest produce coming from the North are things you can live without. You don't necessarily need pepper, tomato or onion in your food. Besides, you can use tin tomatoes.�.

This development provides the opportunity for a paradigm shift in how southern Nigerian youths view agriculture. No doubt, it is a drudgery-prone profession. But there are several components that are less stressful than hoping on a bus in Oshodi by 4 am to get to work in Lagos Island and making the stressful reverse trip in the evening. Yet, the average white collar job pays ''peanut'' to graduates.

Small animal production is a good example of less stressful agriculture. Fish, snail, edible insects, rabbits, etc, are all agro businesses you can invest in, even without a degree in agriculture.

My cousin Ugbogu Ihechikara Chuks
(https://www.facebook.com/ugbogu.chuks)
is a fish farmer. He can train you (with a fee) on how to start your own cat fish farm. Those are his artisanal catfish ponds in the video.

Two safe strategies to be rid of the Fulani problem in Igboland. No bullets fired. No lives lost.

1. Establish Igbo-owned cattle business all over Igboland. Reason: the Fulani cattle rearers are in Igboland for economic reasons. Take their competitive edge away with your own cattle and they would be gone. I wonder why the famous Igbo business acumen does not extend to cattle production.

2. Form a regional political party to democratically take power from Igbo leaders. (this goes particularly to Kanu and his IPOB). Reason: the current Igbo political leaders cannot protect the homeland. Believe it or not, the Fulani and their military backers thrive in Igboland because of support from Igbo APC, PDP and APGA governors.

Why is Kanu/IPOB critical here?
Well, Kanu's objectives are supposed to be popular in Igboland. Apparently, only he has a large crowd of loyal supporters in today's Igboland. So he only needs to campaign against PDP, APC and APGA, not for himself. Now, imagine Kanu as governor of Abia and 4 of his folks as governors of Enugu, Imo, Anambra, and Ebonyi. Every KILLER Fulani (note the word killer as a qualifying adjective) would be gone the next day. I believe that's what every single Igbo person wants - a secure homeland.

On the issue of Biafra, it is still unclear if majority of Igbos want Biafra. It is easier to conduct an Igbo-wide referendum on that with a Kanu party in charge.

tatatar:
The pepertrators are clearly benefitting so what exactly is this flathèad saying

Which perpetrators are benefiting? The millions of poverty-stricken Almajiris now running down south to beg for crumbs?

DuwaRepublic:
Lol I only mention Igbos in my post cos you only mentioned Igbos in your OP, Igbo priest sold you through long juju arochukwu cave it’s just the truth bro.

Yoruba slaves were results of slave raids and war conquests, mostly against the north, but wars were fought westward as well against Dahomey, and Ashanti to name a few.

I mentioned Igbo because I am Igbo. To avoid low IQ people misreading and derailing the post, I HAVE DELETED ANY MENTION OF ANY TRIBE. Now can you please leave all this long grammar and answer the question, if you may. Do Africans owe African Americans an apology? Specific to you, you are Yoruba; do you think you owe African Americans of Yoruba origin an apology?

DuwaRepublic:
You didn’t say it, you insinuated it and you know it

So you are now a mind reader? My oh my? No wonder Nigeria has not worked since 1960. Low IQ people everywhere.

DuwaRepublic:
Exactly. Igbos weren’t the highest number of slaves from Africa please stop with the false narratives.

Also igbo priests used long juju arochukwu cave to trick their fellow kinsmen into being sold to slavery. So are people from other tribes supposed to apologies for the actions of a wicked Igbo priest, even tho they had nothing to do with such actions?

So the Yoruba slaves in America and Brazil and Cuba were sold off by Igbo slave traders? Is that even the topic of this post? MEN! Nairaland is filled with low IQ folks

DuwaRepublic:
Exactly. Igbos weren’t the highest number of slaves from Africa please stop with the false narratives.

Also igbo priests used long juju arochukwu cave to trick their fellow kinsmen into being sold to slavery. So are people from other tribes supposed to apologies for the actions of a wicked Igbo priest, even tho they had nothing to do with such actions?

But who said Ibos are the highest slaves in America? Where did you read that in this article?

MinorityOpinion:
In your write up, igbo are not highest slaves from Africa, we should all strive to be correct as our younger generation will later read this and think its true.

Where did you read that Igbos are the highest slaves from Africa?

madamgrace:
What for?

BECAUSE you sold them to White people. Did you read the article at all?

Should Africans apologize to African-Americans?
Yes, they should

Folks, what do you think about this line of argument? Are Africans complicit in the plight of African-Americans over these 400 years?

Copied from Facebook
A NOTE ON AFRICAN AMERICANS

African Americans are the most long suffering and resilient group of people in the world; no other group comes close. Centuries ago, they endured kidnapping and being sold off by their own kind back in Africa. Coming to the Americas they endured enslavement by peoples of European descent in both North and South America. Since abolition of slavery, they have endured lynchings, deep-seated racism, systemic deprivation in the financial and health systems, and ongoing brutality by an angry and often racist police system. By God, African Americans need help to fight racism. Instructively, they can only get it from non-African-American Americans (no pun intended). On that note, I beg all "non-African" Americans, especially White America (but also African immigrants in America), to please stop sitting on the fence. Most Americans are very wonderful people. But you must now take a firm stand on racism. You really only have two choices: either to be a racist or an antiracist; no in-between, no lukewarmness.

On a personal note, I am an American citizen, originally from West Africa. Why is this relevant? Well, most African Americans have West African ancestry. I do not know if my OWN ancestors were actively involved in the acquisition of fellow human beings for the White slave dealers back in West Africa 400 or so years ago. Regardless, I hereby apologize to African Americans on my OWN ancestors' behalf. I also urge all West Africans to apologize to African Americans for the involvement of our ancestors, as a symbolic gesture.

God bless African Americans. God bless America, the greatest country on planet earth.

In the context of the video in the link below:
https://www.facebook.com/nnanyere/videos/3322149927819807/ Please watch the video

It is clear that America bears responsibility for how it has treated African Americans for 400 years.

But, how much responsibility should the British ''Empire'' bear for much of the slavery, racism, colonization and usurpation of other people's lands all around the world? After all, many, if not most, Caucasian Americans who owned slaves in North America have British ancestry.

Similarly, how much responsibility should the Spanish, the Portuguese, the French, the Dutch, and the Flemish bear for slave trading and colonialism in Africa and the Americas?

How much responsibility should West Africans bear for engaging in human slave trade (after all, trade is a transactional action between two parties) that led to these problems for African Americans?

All of these people should be apologizing to African Americans.

firo08:
The law will take it course

Best answer.

FieldMarshall06:
Why should you open this kind of post in the midst of a fight. Why are some people stupid?

You are the stupid one. AfDB is owned by all of us, Africans. If there is a problem with staff and management we should be asking. Asking means investigating. You must be Yoruba, right?

MajorOvakporaye:
he's very guilty

I would not say so by default. Let him do the needful and let them investigate him

Olominira:
[s][/s]

Lol! You can cross out the post as much as you want. It does not stop the fact that allegations are subject to investigation. Nigerians are too corrupt for me to vouch for any of them. I can only vouch for myself. Thank God we are not dealing with a situation controlled from Nigeria. Adesina will either be vindicated or found guilty. It is not the end of the world. Don't go and commit suicide ooooo

What if it turns out that Adesina is corrupt and guilty as charged? Are Nigerians really going to sit down and vouch for anyone? I would not because as a Nigerian I know wetin dey ground . Let him just allow himself to be investigated. That's the only way to prove his innocence.

babasolution:
all third world countries practice police and military brutality,but for a first world country to consistently practice this kind of brutality then its more than meets the eye.Its not normal anymore.Thats a red flag

You call yourself third world which is rather pathetic. We are all human beings and should behave the same, whether America or Nigeria. There is no difference between Nigerian police and the U.S police. But there is a difference between public and government reactions in both countries. How many times have Nigerians protested police brutality in Nigeria? How many Nigerian cops have been punished for brutality? Nigerians are hypocrites and cowards.