*NORTHERN ETHNIC MINORITIES AND THE CRISIS OF IDENTITY IN NIGERIA!*
The tragic events of September 14, 2017, that claimed the lives of two innocent young people should not be forgotten! I logged onto Facebook on the morning of September 15, 2017, and immediately saw the headline “Tarok student (Jerry Mantim Binkur,) killed in Igbos-Hausa/Fulani's clash in Jos”. A Tarok 400 level Computer Science Student and a future leader killed in his state (Plateau) as a result of Igbo-Hausa/Fulani clash! On checking my Whatsapp again, I came across another very sad news that one of my classmate, a fellow Tangale man and a serving Police officer Daniel Stephen was killed in the southern part of Nigeria as a result of another Igbo-Hausa/Fulani clash! And now the disturbing video footage that is going viral in which every northerner (including the same natives of Tangale and Tarok) is classified as Onya-Hausa to be killed (rumoured to have been recorded in Abia State). But how true is it that Jerry and Daniel are Hausa/Fulani’s? And will I be wrong to say that while the ethnic minorities in the north are identified as Hausa/Fulani’s in the south, they are also seen as enemies of the same Hausa/Fulani’s in the north? Will Jerry have been spared if he was living in the southern part of Nigeria during this recent unrest? What about Daniel? Will he also have been spared if he was working in the northern part of Nigeria during the recent unrest? These are questions that every northern ethnic minority should reflect on while we pay tribute and say goodbye to these two gentlemen and the many other innocent victims of Igbo-Hausa/Fulani clashes. This has nothing to do with religion nor politics, it is, however, a wake-up call to all northern ethnic minorities to raise up, speak out, and seek answers to the aforementioned and many other questions. I have always believed we should be more united as northerners but recent events and the body language of some of our current leaders are making it clear that the northern ethnic minority is indeed in a deep identity crisis!
There is no better time to raise the consciousnesses that Nigeria belongs to all of us whether we are from the south or north and whether we belong to the majority or the minority tribe. However, recent developments in the country with the dangerous propensity they connote, have made it imperative for many of us to call on every northern ethnic minority to raise up against the ongoing systematic marginalisation by the so-called majority tribes. Let us organise ourselves and air our collective views as the call for the restructuring of the country intensifies. We believe in a united Nigeria that is restructured for the common good of all its federating units were all Nigerians are equal, free, and liberated from the shackles of oppressors. Let’s join forces with northern ethnic minority movements such as the Middle-Belt Patriotic Front (MB-PF) and the Middle Belt Youth Council in order to ensure that our voice is heard.
The APC public hearings on restructuring and True Federalism is scheduled to commence on September 18, 2017, in various parts of the country (Benin, Enugu and Ibadan will end with a meeting with civil society organisations and professional groups in Abuja on October 9). The Committee has tabled the following twelve issues for discussion and called for memoranda from members of the public.
1. Creation/merger of states and the framework and guidelines for achieving that
2. Derivation principle bordering on what percentage of federal collectible revenue should be given back
3. Devolution of powers on what item on the exclusive legislative list should be transferred to the recurrent list and federating units, especially state and community police, prisons
4. Federation Units: Should Nigeria be based on regions or zones or 36-state structure
5. Fiscal federalism and revenue allocation
6. Form of government (parliamentary or presidential)
7. Independent candidacy
8. Land tenure system
9. Local government autonomy
10. Power sharing and rotation
11. Resource control; and
12. Type of legislature
These are the 12 issues that Nigerians will have the opportunity to air their views by submitting a memorandum and meeting the committee. We shouldn’t be left behind! This is another avenue to make the views of the northern ethnic minorities heard!
Many thanks.
Latuji Jnr!
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