TOTO CRISIS AND GEN YEKINI’S CONFLICT RESOLUTION STRATEGIES: The Stand of Egbira National Development Association(ENDA)
INTRODUCTION
On Tuesday, 26th March, 2019, a handful of Egbira and Bassa elders were invited to Government House, Lafia, ostensibly to initiate the commencement of a peace and conflict resolution process.
It turned out to be a bouquet of peace plans on the fast lane.
Maj Gen M.A. Yekini, the Commander of Operation Whirl Stroke, in collaboration with Nasarawa State Government under Governor Umaru Tanko Almakura, handed down a strange peace deal to the Egbira and Bassa communities.
The two parties present at the meeting were directed to return home and consult with their people, raise a team of five people each from the two parties and the other ethnic groups to resume a discussion on:
1. The prospects of the appointment of a Bassa Paramount Ruler of the disputed Turunku Chiefdom.
2. The return of the Bassa ethnic group to be facilitated by Gen Yekini in liaison with Gov Almakura’s Administration in Nasarawa State.
3. That the two agenda above must be discussed, resolved, concluded and implemented before 29th May, 2019.
We all know that hastened peace is fragile peace and forced peace process is even worse off.
At best, these are military directives pushed down the throats of the people who ought to be persuaded to sit together, discuss, understand their situation and the value of the peace which has eluded them and negotiate their own peace amicably, devoid of rancour, violence or mistrust.
A credible peace process is one which engenders understanding and long lasting peace to forestall future occurrence, not the brand being pursued by Gently Yekini.
The questions begging for answers are: why use force? Why the big rush? Who are the shadows behind the sudden haste? When and where is any conflict ever resolved amicably through military fiat?
The haste being deployed here is clearly against any peace protocol known to the whole wide world. This is a strange peace package. And this package is suspect!
BACKGROUND
Everyone knows the genesis of our conflicts with the Bassa, to the extent that the Bassa brought this senseless violence upon the Egbira.
Even this one that has been raging in the past one year is not our war. It was a conflict between the Bassa and Egbira of Bassa LGA of Kogi state wrought on us in Toto LGA of Nasarawa State with the unprovoked attack on the unsuspecting Egbira town of Ugya by the Bassa militia on 24th April, 2018. Since then till date, it has been one attack or the other on the peace loving Egbira people and their settlements.
We have lost many innocent lives, houses, cars and other items of immense value in the incessant and devastating attacks by the Bassa in cahoots with their hired mercenaries and sponsors.
For reasons not clearly known to us the Bassa have been launching violence, arson and deaths upon the Egbira since 1980.
The wanton destruction of lives and property came to a head in 1997. The Bassa decided to go on self-exile and were returned to Toto by the Obasanjo Administration in the year 2000. Peace was brokered and sealed. The Egbira buried the hatchet. Twenty years down the line, not as much as a harsh word was uttered by the Egbira against the Bassa. Unknown to us however, our guests, the Bassa, were busy stockpiling assorted arms and ammunition in those twenty years, with which to annihilate us.
THE CURRENT CRISIS
The extermination plans became manifest when on 24th April, 2018, the Bassa militia attacked Ugya town. As is traditional with the Bassa, they again decided to proceed on self-exile. We have come to realize that the recourse to exile is the Bassa strategy for war without end. It’s from exile, their vantage position, that they visit mayhem on us. For a whole one year today, and still counting, hardly a week passes without the Bassa hitting one or two Egbira settlements. And each attack is trailed by monumental destruction, pain, blood and deaths on the Egbira.
Worried by the spate of attacks, Nasarawa State Governor, Umaru Tanko Almakura, visited the Egbira in Umaisha to hear from them on 4th June, 2018.
He paid the Bassa a similar visit in their location outside Nasarawa State. The Governor asked what went amiss. The Bassa gave two reasons for attacking the Egbira:
1. Lack of a Chiefdom of their own.
2. Inadequate political appointment slots.
To think that these are the reasons the Bassa would not let us have peace but constantly keep us on edge for forty years is both amazing and disgusting, to say the least!
For God’s sake, it’s not in the hands of the Egbira to create a chiefdom or to give political appointments!
It’s conventional wisdom that chiefdoms are created by government in line with history, following due diligence and consulting widely and deeply, especially with the proposed neighbours whose areas of influence would be affected. Also, politicians pick their appointees from among those who have worked for them or supported them to win elections. The Bassa wouldn’t be crying foul today had Labaran Maku of APGA won the Governorship elections in 2015 or in 2019. They would have picked the choicest appointments!
In all of this, how does the Egbira justify being the Bassa’s stumbling block, or their target or cannon fodder? So, the Bassa kill us to draw the attention of the government to their base demands!
THE CHRONICLE OF TOWNS AND VILLAGES ATTACKED BY THE BASSA IN THE PAST ONE YEAR
For the avoidance of doubt, and also for the records, the Bassa militia men have, in the past one year alone, attacked the following Egbira towns and villages, with some of the settlements visited with multiple attacks by the Bassa:
1. Ugya 2. Ogba 3. Okuwa 4. Katakpa 5. Kolo 6. Umaisha 7. Toto 8. Shafan Abakpa 9. Shafan Kwatto 10. Bakete 11. Kyakaruku 12. Adadu 13. Ogatte 14. Zwere (where the Bassa exchanged fire with the Nigerian army led by Gen Yekini)
The settlements of the other peace loving ethnic groups in Toto LGA have also come under the attack of the Bassa rag tag army, with some of them receiving multiple attacks, as follows:
1. Karbana (a Ganagana ethnic settlement)
2. Tudu Uku (a Gade ethnic settlement)
3. Lokogoma (a Gade ethnic settlement)
OUR POSITION
Let it be known that the Egbira ethnic group, which is recognized by history as the first to inhabit Toto LGA, is not against the Bassa having their chiefdom, but we would not accept a Turunku chiefdom for the Bassa, because doing that would amount to supporting injustice. It’s the Gbagyi ethnic group that are historically recognized for leadership in Turunku village. We would also not support the Bassa sphere of influence to be grabbed by another, if that situation presents itself in future.
Besides, the Egbira community would not accept to discuss the creation of a chiefdom at a time the proposed beneficiaries are on our neck, fighting and killing us daily. Let the violence stop first! Then only would anyone be able to focus on the issues on the table and clearly take each down objectively.
On the issue of the return of the Bassa, who in fact went on self exile, the decision to be back or not is all theirs, since no one asked them to leave in the first place.
If however, Maj Gen Yekini or Nasarawa State Government wants to facilitate their return, officially, we would want a few questions answered and addressed, thus:
1. We would want to know, first from the Bassa what the Egbira did to them to warrant being their target of attacks. And what Gen Yekini and Nasarawa State Governor Almakura think of the attacks on us.
2. We need answers to why Gen Yekini, whose video still trends in the social media as having described the Bassa as the militia, from whom 45 assorted weapons and over 700 ammunition were recovered decided to construct a road to Zwere, the Bassa town where the arms were recovered by Gently Yekini and is yet to give the Egbira a semblance of similar favour. Why reward the Bassa? Is it to encourage and embolden them to continue to kill us?
3. Neither the Nasarawa State Government nor Gen Yekini has considered taking stock of the losses the Egbira have suffered in the past one year from the pummelling by the Bassa fire power. Who will compensate the Egbira for all their losses? We never followed the Bassa to fight them in exile. They followed us to our homes. Who pays the damages?
4. Gen Yekini’s army was reported to have exchanged fire with the Bassa militia. In one out of the many battles between the Nigerian Army and the Bassa rag tag army in Shafan Abakpa(Sofiyo) the Bassa killed nine people in one fell swoop, including an army officer. This is an evidence that the Bassa are armed to the teeth. The Egbira who have all along relied on prayer to God to protect them, don’t have arms. So, is the haste to return the Bassa aimed at concluding the extermination of the Egbira?
5. Does Gen Yekini know that the Bassa have been talking freely in the open market that they have him (Gen Yekini) together with the APGA Governorship candidate, Labaran Maku working together, on their side? What can Gen Yekini say about this open market claims by the Bassa amidst the suspicious haste to force peace on people that are yet to resolve their differences.
We don’t need anyone to be biased towards us but we sure need people to be on the side of justice.
6. Has Gen Yekini forgotten that he called a ceasefire about two months ago at the instance of the Bassa community and that just a day after he took the deal to Ohimege Opanda, the Paramount Ruler of the Egbira, who accepted the olive branch, the Bassa crossed the red line by attacking Adadu, an Egbira town? The Bassa followed up with more vicious attacks on Shafa and a triple attack on Ogatte, both of which are Egbira settlements. Who is fooling who?
7. The conflict emanated from Bassa LGA of Kogi State between the two ethnic groups, but the Bassa militia in Nasarawa State felt they should extend the violence to us and they have been doing that since 24th April, 2018 till date. Why must the Bassa spill the violence on us in Toto LGA when since 2000, upon their return from their first self-exile, we never had a single misunderstanding?
RECOMMENDATIONS/WAY FORWARD
1. In view of the insincerity of the earlier ceasefire which could not be adhered to by the Bassa, any ceasefire arrangements now should not be less than six months period to establish the sincerity of both parties to the peace process. No peace can be achieved while attacks are ongoing.
2. Government would need to appoint a non biased NGO with a credible track record of performance and vast experience in negotiating peace to handle the peace and conflict resolution and management processes.
3. At all cost, the hands of the army, especially army personnel already linked with the APGA Governorship candidate’s campaigns be totally removed and distanced from the peace discussions. This is because some names ring a bell in mercenary sponsorship in the violent attacks on the Egbira by the Bassa.
4. Government is advised to consult widely and deepen discussions on matters relating to the realization of a Bassa chiefdom and the appointment of a Bassa paramount ruler.
5. That, if care is not taken, in respect of items 1 to 4 above, the fragile peace we enjoy now could be made far worse by the Bassa, given the unguarded and indeed, inexplicable haste.
6. Since the Bassa spilled the conflict in Kogi State on us in Nasarawa State and now attacks are ongoing in both Bassa LGA in Kogi State and Toto LGA of Nasarawa State, it is contingent to plan the peace process to involve the two border LGs.
CONCLUSIONS
We thank the Government of Nasarawa State for the show of concern in the ongoing violence against the Egbira by the Bassa but we appeal for proper stock taking of losses and the compensation plans to heal the wounds before any steps are taken to appoint or create any chiefdom.
The Egbira would be committed to the return of peace in the area so long as due process is followed and the conflict resolution processes are untainted, transparent and unbiased.
Lastly, we appeal to the Egbira community to continue to be law abiding citizens because it pays to obey the laws of the land and to remain peace loving, irrespective of bloodied noses, destruction and deaths wrought on them by the Bassa militia men and their hired bandits, with support and sponsorship from their political friends.
On our part, we are trusting that Nasarawa State will do the needful in bringing about lasting peace in our communities.
Thank you and God bless.
Credit: Egbira National Development Association(ENDA)
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