ABUJA—Tiv indigenous communities in Nasarawa State have cried out over what they describe as a coordinated campaign of killings, violent displacement, and land seizure, allegedly carried out with the backing of state authorities in brazen violation of a subsisting court order.
In a press conference held in Abuja, the Tiv people, led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Terkaa Jerry Aondo, said their ancestral villages across Doma, Obi, Awe, Keana, and parts of Lafia Local Government Areas are under siege. They listed over 20 affected communities including Akaha, Utsuwa, Usula, Chabo, Wachi, Ayarkeke, and Uvirkaa, among others.
Aondo alleged that despite a preservative court order issued in SUIT NO. NSD/LF/44/2025, which restrains the Nasarawa State Government from encroaching on Tiv lands, Governor Abdullahi Sule visited the disputed territory on July 1 and flagged off a rice farming project on it. The action, the Tiv say, has further endangered their people and triggered another wave of deadly violence.
“Rather than obey the court, the Governor proceeded to Ayarkeke and Jangwa to begin large-scale rice farming. That act alone tells our people their lives and rights mean nothing to the authorities,” Aondo said.
He added that the crisis has escalated to the point where Tiv people have become targets of brutal attacks. On July 2, a Tiv man identified as Kyobo Ndar was allegedly murdered and his body dismembered by suspected herdsmen along Ajimaka Road in Doma LGA. Despite alerting the military unit stationed nearby, no arrests have been made, the community said.
Currently, hundreds of Tiv families have been displaced from their ancestral lands and are taking refuge in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in Agyaragu Town and Abaagu Village in Obi Local Government Area. The ongoing violence, according to Aondo, mirrors the tragic Yelwata incident that claimed over 200 Tiv lives in past years, warning that history is on the verge of repeating itself.
The Tiv communities accuse the state government and its agents of deliberately violating the rule of law while promoting the dangerous narrative that Tiv people are “settlers” in Nasarawa. This, they say, has emboldened other ethnic groups to incite fresh waves of attacks similar to the ethnic violence that rocked the state between 2000 and 2001.
In their appeal to the federal government and international community, the Tiv communities are demanding that the Nasarawa State Government immediately comply with the court order and halt all activities on the disputed lands. They also called for the deployment of adequate security forces to restore peace and protect the lives and properties of Tiv indigenes.
Furthermore, they urged the Nigerian Bar Association and relevant judicial authorities to investigate what they described as blatant contempt of court by the state government. They called on the federal government to identify and prosecute individuals inciting ethnic hatred and to initiate dialogue-based resolutions that respect the rights of indigenous communities.
“We are being hunted in our own land,” Aondo said. “Our people are displaced, our homes are taken, and our lives are in constant danger. If nothing is done, the situation will deteriorate further.”
Efforts to reach the Nasarawa State Government for a response were unsuccessful as of press time. However, state officials have previously maintained that their agricultural projects are purely developmental and not politically or ethnically motivated.
Human rights advocates have warned that the situation is spiraling into a full-blown humanitarian crisis, calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Security Adviser, the Department of State Services (DSS), the National Human Rights Commission, and international bodies to act swiftly to prevent further loss of life.
