President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that the murder of Rev. Fr. David Tanko at Kpankufu in Taraba state “highlights the urgency required in finding a solution to the enduring Tiv, Jukun crisis.”
He also called on the governments and people of Benue and Taraba states to exercise restraint following the killing of the Catholic priest.
A statement issued Friday in Abuja Friday by the senior special assistant to the president (media & publicity), Garba Shehu, indicated that the president had directed the “Taraba and Benue state governors, traditional rulers, specifically the Tor Tiv and the Aku Uka of Wukari, religious and community leaders in the two states to meet urgently to bring an end to persistent violent clashes between Jukun and Tiv people.”
According to the statement, “The murder of the Catholic priest highlights the urgency of addressing this embarrassing and persistent conflict.”
The president was also quoted to have said the federal government “will not sit idly and watch the deep-seated antagonistic relationship between the Tiv and Jukun people fester.”
The president said, “I have watched with trepidation and disbelief how hate and bigotry have inhabited the human soul, resulting in brothers killing brothers.
“On behalf of the federal government and the entire people of the country, I offer my condolences to the Catholic community, the government and people of Taraba over the losses arising from recent incidents involving the warring communities.
“The persistent deaths and destruction and the seeming desire by the warring sides to push each other to extinction are embarrassing, and this is against the essence of our ethnic and religious diversity in the country.
“Progress is impossible where violence and destruction are allowed to dominate our daily lives.”
President Buhari acknowledged that the “Tiv, Jukun violence is one of Nigeria’s most persistent and intractable security problems,” and gave the assurance that the federal government “will not leave them to their fate or treat cases of communal violence with levity and indifference.”
“The deployment of security men can only provide a temporary solution. The long-term and lasting solution to this deep-seated antagonistic relationship amongst the warring factions depends on the willingness of those involved to listen to reason and give peace a chance.
“It is time for leaders of the ethnic groups to come together and draw up a roadmap for lasting peace. The impact of this persistent violence on the social and economic life of the people is incalculable.”
According to the statement, a high-level intervention from the federal level, made up religious, community leaders and top security operatives, is being put together by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) to examine all issues underlying the conflicts in the hope of finding a permanent solution.
