Jukun Wanu demands creation of new LGA in Benue, accuses Tiv of Land Grabbing, Marginalization
By Joseph Adahnu, Yola
The National Association of Jukun Wanu (NAJUWA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Federal Government to create a separate local government area for the Jukun people in Benue State, citing longstanding marginalization, land dispossession, and cultural erasure by the dominant Tiv ethnic group.
At a press conference held Saturday in Abuja, leaders of the Jukun Wanu community’s President Engr. Moses Amankye and Secretary General Musa Atase, decried what they described as systemic oppression and historical injustice.
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They accused the Tiv of forcibly occupying Jukun ancestral lands across 14 local government areas in Benue State.
According to NAJUWA, the absence of a designated local government for the Jukun Wanu in Benue State has resulted in their marginalization and misrepresentation.
The association lamented that despite their long-standing presence in the state, Jukun communities are referred to as “settlers” while the Tiv, whom they described as migrants, dominate political and administrative structures.
“The Jukun Wanu, also known as Riverine Jukun, are indigenous to this region and have existed here long before colonial interference. Yet today, we are treated as second-class citizens in our own land,” Amankye stated.
The association claimed that the Tiv currently occupy the lands in Makurdi, Guma, Kwande, Vandeikya, Ukum, Konshisha, Katsina-Ala, Gboko, Logo, Gwer West, Gwer East, Ushongo, Tarka, and Buruku LGAs—territories which NAJUWA insists historically belong to the Jukun.
In a strongly worded declaration titled “Defending Our Heritage, Seeking Justice, and Upholding Truth Against Falsehood,” the Jukun leaders narrated how the Tiv, aided by colonial policies in the early 20th century, displaced the Jukun from their traditional lands. They said this injustice has continued unchecked, with Tiv political dominance enabling further suppression of the Jukun’s cultural institutions.
“Despite our hospitality in welcoming the Tiv centuries ago, they have used their numerical and political advantage to rename our towns, dismantle our traditional systems, and erase our history,” Atase said. “But let it be clear: we are the descendants of the Kwararafa Empire, and we will no longer be silent in the face of injustice.”
NAJUWA said it plans to challenge the status quo through legal and political channels. “By the grace of God, this matter will be taken to court,” the leaders stated, emphasizing that their demand is not for the expulsion of the Tiv, but for the restoration of their customary land rights and recognition.
The group called on President Tinubu, the National Assembly, and stakeholders from across Nigeria—including Jukun communities in Taraba, Nassarawa, Adamawa, Bauchi, Kano, and Gombe—to support the creation of a local government for the Jukun in Benue State.
“We have set up a national machinery to begin consultation with all relevant authorities and stakeholders. Our goal is simple: to secure justice, recognition, and a local government that reflects our identity and rights,” Amankye added.
As tensions over identity and land ownership continue to simmer in Benue, the Jukun Wanu’s demands bring renewed attention to ethnic relations, historical claims, and the challenge of balancing cultural heritage with modern governance.
