Taraba on edge as Tiv communities cry out over alleged attacks, forced displacement plans

Tension is once again rising in Taraba State as Tiv communities accuse unnamed groups of repeated assaults on their farmlands and homes, alongside fears that they may be uprooted from their ancestral territories in the name of government development.

Engineer and community advocate, Engr. Tsekaa Friday Shuur, raised fresh concerns, alleging that Tiv residents across several localities have been bombarding Governor Agbu Kefas with calls and messages, pleading for protection from suspected Fulani and Jukun militias said to be operating within their communities.

Shuur questioned how the government can promise safety to the Tiv population while, according to him, simultaneously pushing them to give up ancestral lands for state projects.

He insisted that public infrastructure ought to benefit the people, not strip them of their historical identity and land rights.

He pointed specifically to Ikyaior in Wukari Local Government Area, alleging that the state intends to sack the community to create a Forward Operating Base (FOB).

He maintained that Governor Kefas has publicly declared that the project must go forward and that “there would be no reversal of the decision.”

Calling the reported stance deeply unsettling, Shuur cautioned that any attempt at enforced relocation could heighten tensions and jeopardise the already fragile stability in the state.

He also criticised what he termed the “disturbing silence” of Tiv elites, despite recurring reports of Tiv farmers being killed on their farms.

According to him, if the affected locals choose to defend themselves, authorities might swiftly brand them as criminals.

Shuur further alleged that assaults on Tiv settlements occur nearly every month, claiming that the state government’s failure to respond suggests passive endorsement.

He warned that decisions allegedly influenced by powerful actors could trigger long-term instability in Taraba State if nothing is done urgently.

Efforts to reach the Taraba State Government for comments were unsuccessful at the time this report was filed.