Communities raise alarm over land grabbing in Nasarawa

By Abel Daniel, Lafia 

Elders, youths and concerned stakeholders across southern senatorial Communities have expressed worry over the upsurge in alleged land‑grabbing incidents, leading to violent attacks and killings of innocent citizens. 

A community leader, Mr. Adamu Isaac, blamed these unfortunate developments to the indiscriminate sales of ancestral lands to strangers by some scrupulous members of communities for immediate financial gains and other fringe benefits. 

Isaac alleged that most farming communities in the southern senatorial district is being affected grossly in recent times with reported killings of farmers and other local residents.

Among such communities are Sarkin Noma, Kadarko, Kwara, and Giza in Keana Local Government; Doka and Agbashi in Doma Local Government; Dudugulu in Obi Local Government; as well as several other communities in Lafia and Awe Local Government Areas, which have become the epicentres of daily attacks, kidnappings and killings of innocent citizens.

These incidents of land grabbing in Nasarawa State range from the allocation of ancestral farmlands to foreigners by some agents of government, who now claim ownership, leading to various levels of attacks and killing anyone found around such lands. 

Haruna Ogoshi described another dimension to this ugly development ,noting the acquisition of such lands by private investors for large‑scale farming activities, mining, and fishing, depriving the original inhabitants of land spaces for agricultural practices, among other ventures.

Expressing fear, Harian said “these unwholesome practices could serve as a harbinger of criminal activities because such places usually provide a refuge for criminal elements, from where they occasionally launch attacks on the people.

“They have also served as kidnappers’ dens where victims of kidnapping incidents are taking for ransom negotiation or even execution. 

“Such places have also been used to harbour dangerous weapons with which they attack peaceful citizens.

Mohammed Illiyasu regretted, however, that these trends, if left to continue, could lead to an unbearable catastrophe as the population continues to soar amid shrinking land availability for future generations. 

He revealed that the systemic infiltration strategy deployed by some unknown faces is to use locals to purchase community lands in large sizes and sooner or later when the real owners, who is a total strangers to that community, appear to claim ownership, a crisis becomes imminent.

A youth leader, Mr. Ayatse James ,called on the state government to intervene quickly in order to halt the ongoing killings from escalating into reprisals.

He urged security agencies to remain vigilant and mobilise into the affected areas to restore normalcy and prevent further attacks.

The youth leader appealed to landowners to look beyond immediate benefits and avoid indiscriminate sales of their ancestral lands, as there will be none left in the future. 

He also cautioned Community leaders and stakeholders who are in the habit of illegally selling of ancestral lands to desist from the practice, against exposing their own communities to future dangers.

In his proverbial expression , “If you sell your father’s land, to buy trumpet, on whose land will you stand to blow the trumpet?”, he warned.

Lending is piece of advice, an academia, Dr. Jonathan Okori said “as a symbol of identity, security, and legacy, there is a compelling need for the indigenous people of Nasarawa State to safeguard their inheritance, as it may leave them without a place to call home or a sense of belonging”.

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