Chieftaincy Crisis: We Have Been Peaceful With Each Other-Karimjo, Wurkum Groups

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Chieftaincy Crisis: We Have Been Peaceful With Each Other- Karimjo-speaking people in the Karim Lamido local government area of Taraba State, have blamed the administration of Governor Darius Ishaku for being responsible for the recently clashed between the Karimjo tribe and their neighbors, the Wurkum tribe.

The Former National President of Karimjo Community Development Association Nationwide, Zubairu Bitrus made the allegation while briefing journalists in Jalingo.

He said the two tribes including about twelve other tribes have been leaving peacefully with one another for centuries not until recently when the issue of chieftaincy and chiefdom creation began in the state by the present government.

“Karim Lamido is a multi-cultural society, having Karimjo as the first settler of Karim. That is why Karim is named after the tribe called Karimjo and Karimjo has been nicknamed by the Fulani, we are Karim by tribe but the ‘Jo’ that is a prefix to it has been given to us by the Fulani-Karimjo, which means ‘Karim Man’.

“Karimjo people have been yearning for emancipation for many years when it comes to chiefdom, we have written several memoranda but to no avail. It was just a caveat that we are under Wurkum Chiefdom. We have accepted in good faith, even though it is long overdue for us to have our freedom but nobody cares.

“The present administration gave part of Wurkum as Banbur Chiefdom with the headquarters in Banbur and decided to appoint a Second Class Chief in a Wurkum Chiefdom after the demise of the father of the present appointed Second Class Chief and then imposed him in Karim Land, which is not Wurkum land.

“Am not talking about Karim Lamido, Karim Lamido is a local government, “Karim” is a designed territory within Karim Lamido which is inhabited by Karimjo people who are the rightful owners of the land and all the resources you may think of.

According to Bitrus, the peaceful protesters embarked on by the Karimjo youths which is constitutional was aimed at letting the world know that they were shortchanged as a people but ended up in molestation, killing, and burning of their houses by the alleged Wurkum militia with the alleged support of the military.

He alleged that the military was been sponsored to take sides in the crisis because of the influence of the Wurkum tribe in both the military and the government.

When asked for the way forward, Mr. Zubairu Bitrus said giving the Karimjo their Chiefdom will solve the crisis because everyone needs his freedom.

“If I may estimate, we are about fifty thousand (50,000) Karimjo people asides from women and children, you know I am thinking like an Israeli because Israeli don’t count children and women and the landmarks are about 195kmq by my estimation. Bitrus added.

On the other side, the National President of Wurkum Community Development Association worldwide, Comrade Wilfred Kwamchi told newsmen in Jalingo that when their brothers, the Karimjo people heard about the announcement of the new Second Class Chief by the Government of Taraba State they started burning tires in Karim Lamido for reasons based known to them.

“So, when he was presented with the staff of the office on the 11th May 2023 we took him to Karim, on reaching Karim, things were in order, everywhere was quiet but in the night the Karimjo brothers went to the houses of the Wurkums in Karim Lamido and started burning them,” he alleged.

On whether the traditional stool in question is supposed to be rotational, Mr. Kwamchi said “Well, I don’t know what they are claiming, it is not supposed to be because Wurkum Chiefdom has been in existence since 1976 when the late Chief of Wurkum was Turbaned as the third Class Chief and since then we have been in power up till now.

“And the entire local government, history has it, it is called Wurkum District, it is not Karimjo District, the Chiefdom is not Karimjo Chiefdom is Wurkum Chiefdom,” Kwamchi insisted.

On the allegations that the Wurkums are using their advancement in terms of education and politics as well as having influential people in the military to victimize the Karimjo tribe, the worldwide leader of the Wurkums, Comrade Wilfred Kwamchi said “Let us no believe what they say, let us assume I am retired military personnel, am not oo but am just giving you as an example, let us assume I am a retired Lt. Gen. In the Nigerian Army, can I in my own as a Wurkum man request for the military to go to Karim Lamido? I can’t, because am no longer in service, so, they are only telling lies.

“And if they talk of because we have educated people, well, nobody has stopped anyone of them to go to school.

When asked for the way forward, Comrade Wilfred Kwamchi said if not because of what the Karimjo did on Friday 12/5/2023, they have never quarreled with the Karimjo people.

“So, the way forward is for them to come back home and think of the relationship that exists between us and them but if they want to go the way they are going, I want to say it as a President, for now, we are calming our boys not to take arms, not to take laws into their hands but if they continue we will be force to also retaliate.

“The first out of the seven villages belonging to Wurkum they went and burnt is called Balasa and Balasa has been in existence even before the Karimjo went to Karim Lamido, they were not in Karim Lamido, they were around the river ban area. In Fact, we will allow the crisis to rest and if the Karimjo man wants to tell you that Chiefdom belongs to him, let him come and depend on it. They should have done what the Banbur did to get their Chiefdom if they so desire. Kwamchi revealed.

When contacted, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Bala Dan Abu suggested that the Permanent Secretary of the Bureau for local government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Bello Yerro should be contacted because he will be in a better position to know what they did in appointing the Second Class Chief of Karim was good or wrong.

However, in a telephone conversation, Lt. Oni, spokesperson of the Nigerian Army 6 Brigade Jalingo said the organization is not a tribal institution, therefore the Nigerian Army would never take sides while intervening in any crisis.

He described the allegation as false and an attempt to tarnish the image of the military.