We
are worried that discussants on this forum have remained at a peripheral level
about the ongoing Berom/Fulani imbroglio. Members are viewing it as one tribe's
inhumanity to another tribe. Since these people have not suddenly gone mad, we
should inquire what went wrong, who drew first blood, who is the aggressor,
what is or are the issues in contention, for how long has the problem lasted,
what will solve the problem, why have governments at Fed and State levels not
been able to solve the problem? and so on.
For the benefit of discussants, here
is a little background info: The Berom and Fulani have lived in symbiosis with
the Fulani for about 200 years. The Berom therefore included the Fulani chief,
Ardo, in the Berom Traditional Council which has 11 district heads. The current
Gbong Gwom's name is Buba, a Fulani name. We all remember the Plateau State
Assembly member who died in a Fulani attack along with Sen. Dantong just under
3 yrs ago - his name was Gyang Fulani. Do the Berom therefore love the Fulanis
so much or what? Beroms used to loan their boys to Fulanis who taught them
cattle rearing and graduated with them with the gift of a calf while Fulani
cattle fertilised Berom farms with their dung.
Both Beroms and Fulani occupied
Bisichi town until all Beroms left about 40 yrs ago. Beroms voted Alhaji Isa
Haruna, a Fulani man from Bisichi town, into the Northern House of Rep's in
1958. At his tenure’s end Alh. Isa Haruna told the Berom to field their man and
they fielded Malan Bature Dangyang. Then something went wrong around 1999. What
was it? We cannot say with certainty. Did the Berom suddenly decide they didn't
like Fulanis as friends or did the Fulani wake up one morning and just decided
to start grazing their cattle on Berom growing farm crops and shooting Berom
with AK47s? After losing about 1,000 men, women and children, the Berom,
decided to embark on reprisal attacks which you are discussing right now. Note
that the Berom are 99% Christian while the Fulani are 99% Muslim. But we don't
know if the cause of the problem between them is religious.
Note too that
Fulani elite like Alh Sale Bayeri and Dr Aliyu Tilde have spread false
propaganda that there is a genocidal war against the Fulani by Berom. The Berom
have taken their case too to the ICC with the assistance of SERAP claiming
genocide against them by the Fulani. Gov. Obasanjo imposed a state of emergency
(SOE) on Plateau in the days of Gov Dariye partly because of this problem. Some
asked for same in Gov. Jang's days but only 3 LGCS were placed on SOE by GEJ.
Note that SOE cannot solve the problem. Before road blockades around Bisichi,
there were many other road blockades by angry villagers in Vom, Riyom, etc,
because the JTF soldiers refused to protect the Berom. Note that the number of
Beroms killed is estimated to be a hundred times the number of Fulani killed by
Berom in reprisal attacks. Several organisations, like Stefanos Foundation,
have records with names and pictures.
Cattle rustling are other dimensions to
the original problem which cannot be the cause of the 5 year old problem.
Remember too that Fulani are attacking people in Zamfara, Kaduna, Oyo, Ekiti,
Benue and Taraba States. Some conniving legislators with sinister motives tried
in the 6th and 7th NASS to get a Grazing Bill passed to give Fulani cattle
rearers only, land paid for by federal funds, in all the 36 states of Nigeria,
while owner farmers are chased away. May be the nomadic way of life is now
obsolete and the Fulani must sedentarize in modern cattle ranches. You analyze
the situation and proffer solutions. But note that the Berom are only doing the
natural thing for any humans - defending themselves.
Even if the Berom have
suddenly turned cannibalistic, is Fulani flesh the only human flesh available
to them? There is more to this problem than meets the eye. Politics, land,
religion and big rich and powerful men from other parts of Nigeria are
definitely involved. We sincerely pray to God for peace in all parts of the
Middle Belt.
