The Resource Center for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) and a coalition of FCT Indigenous Associations have raised fresh concerns over the marginalization of Abuja’s original inhabitants, calling for urgent constitutional reforms to protect their cultural heritage and political rights.
The call was made at a Media Colloquium held at the University of Abuja on Friday, as part of activities marking this year’s United Nations International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
In his opening remarks, CHRICED Executive Director, Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi, announced that his organisation is close to signing a ₦1.3 billion partnership deal with the University of Abuja to establish a befitting Abuja Heritage Centre. He revealed that the MacArthur Foundation has already committed ₦400 million to the project.
“With this, it means your culture remains,” Zikirullahi said, describing the centre as a vital step in preserving the identity of the Nine Tribes and Seventeen Chiefdoms of Abuja.
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He lamented that while the Federal Capital Territory stands as a symbol of national unity and modern development, indigenous communities have been pushed out of political and cultural recognition.
“This colloquium is a platform for truth-telling, historical correction, and collective action,” he said. “Empowering Indigenous communities is not a favour, it is a constitutional and moral obligation.”
In his opening address, Engr. Shittu Chidawa said they are not opposed to development in the FCT; rather, they are against any move that would sideline or exclude them from the system.
Represented by Dr. Aiyigbamida Kwali, the Etsu of Kwali, Luka Ayedoo Nizassan III, said the history of Abuja took a “tragic turn” after it was declared the nation’s capital.
He accused authorities of treating natives as “second-class citizens” and reducing ancestral lands to “goldmines for strangers.”
The monarch also decried the demolition of cultural sites, political exclusion from federal character provisions, and the absence of a state governor for the territory. “Government says Abuja is equivalent to a state, but where is the governor of Abuja?”.
He called for a constitutional review to address fundamental demands of Abuja OIs, the creation of advisory councils, inclusion in all spheres of planning, and faster judicial processes on matters affecting Abuja natives.
In a paper presentation, Prof. Mutiullah Olasupo of the University of Abuja described the plight of Abuja’s original inhabitants as “disheartening” 49 years after the FCT relocation.
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He urged the Federal Government to implement global policies on Indigenous Peoples and warned against violence, advocating dialogue as the path to justice.
Lar Patricia Manko, Acting Vice Chancellor, University of Abuja, represented by Mr. Sani Rasheed, expressed the university’s readiness to protect the interest of the Abuja OIs. The VC solicited assistance for building center for indigenous population at the university.
The colloquium brought together traditional leaders, scholars, activists, and civil society actors committed to preserving indigenous heritage and ending decades of exclusion.