Bagana is one of the riverine settlement located on the shores of the River Niger in the present day Omala local government area of Kog...
Bagana
is one of the riverine settlement located on the shores of the River
Niger in the present day Omala local government area of Kogi State.
Aside the strategic location of Bagana village, it is a business hub
reputed for the supposedly defunct trade by barter system of
transaction. Till date, traders and farmers visit Bagana on its market
days to exchange commodities.
For instance, due to its location, local
inhabitants are predominantly fishermen, they sometimes exchange their
fishes for grains and other farm items depending on their needs. Some
other traders also visit Bagana from far and near to sell or exchange
their goods. With the aid of canoes and water boats, traders can sail
from neighboring Benue and Nasarawa States to Bagana in Kogi State to
sell their goods on market days.
The aborigines are hospitable to
visitors, traders and clergies but are not always defeated by intruders
or looters who made frantic efforts to attack the town in the time past.
In other words, the people of Bagana are known for their unbowed spirit
which never suffered the cowardice effects of intimidation, oppression
or subjugation according to history.
However,
the ugly clamps of modern day aberrations took a swipe on Bagana
village between Saturday, 6th April 2019 and Sunday, 7th April. Many
houses were razed down with about seven persons killed including a
detachment of mobile policemen who were deployed to the scene to quell
the attack. According to residents, the incursion and subsequent attack
that left the town flowing with blood was allegedly perpetrated by armed
Fulani herdsmen who gained access to Bagana village through Ogba, a
neighboring town after sailing across the River Niger.
In
the aftermaths of the ugly incidence which left gloomy faces of tears
in Bagana, leaving the inhabitants to count their loss and mourn the
bereaved, politicians without fear and respect for the dead are striving
in vain to showcase their penchant act of insensitivity to the plights
of the masses who always suffer the wrath of maladministration and bad
leadership style.
It is noteworthy that Kogi State government at the
peak of the crisis deployed a team of security personnel to the scene
which unarguably repelled the attack. It is applaudable however the
attack would have been prevented owing to the fact that local
inhabitants got information of the impending invasion before the
terrorists struck. Bagana village was almost deserted when the attackers
arrived which is believed lessened the number of casualties recorded.
I
want to plead with Governor Yahaya Bello to fulfill his pledge of a
military outpost in Bagana while soliciting to the local warriors to
sheath their swords for justice to prevail by allowing the law to take
its course. Any reprisal attack is tantamount to further crisis because
peace can only be achieved when the remote and immediate causes of the
attack is unraveled. Politicians, political pundits, social media
prophets and prophetess of dooms are strongly advised to keep mute over
sensitive issues especially at times like this in order not to heat the
already heated polity.
The
greatest bargain for peace is a timely and effective dialogue. To this
end, this is not a time for blame game or for political gamblers to play
hide and seek games by leading the shepherd astray. It is time for
stakeholders, team players and the identified aggrieved parties to sit
down on a round table and seek for a long lasting / ending solution to
the lingering crisis without interest or favour.
Just like in most
middle belt States of Nigeria, this is not the first time we are
recording casualties in Omala perhaps due to farmers/herdsmen clashes,
with this background, residents and local inhabitants should be
consulted to know the last straw that broke the Carmel’s back. For the
lingering crisis in Omala Local Government to end, we must erase
politics from the drawing board.
The crisis in Omala is beyond politics
and it is more than what meets the eyes but what we need at the moment
is a peaceful dialogue because the provision of temporary security
architecture will not solve the problems. Securities will not be
deployed to secure the farmlands which is fast becoming a duel ground.
Conclusively,
the idea of peace talks should not solely be vested as a task set aside
for the government because politics can easily be featured to ruin the
terms of agreement. Traditional rulers, stakeholders, private bodies and
Non Governmental Organizations should be coopted to partake in the
proposed dialogue seeking for peace in Omala nation. In my personal
assessment, I strongly believe the last attack recorded in Bagana is
beyond politics.
For instance, mobile policemen were also killed during
the attack, they are not members of any political party. The bloodbath
in Bagana is beyond politics. However, allegations of the intruders
displaying land documents laying claims to the territory should not be
treated with levity.
Before then, the following posers should set the
pace for proper investigation:
1. Was there a point in time the territory was allocated to anyone by proxy or legally documented?
2. Who signed the agreements or documents?
3. Who first raised the issues of invaders showcasing land documents?
4. Did the attackers leave behind any copy of such documents?
5. Can any eyewitness report corroborate such information or misinformation?
The
aforementioned posers should be invoked and utilized as a paradigm to
investigate such allegations. It should not be trashed.
On
the whole, it is not a crime to debate on the recent ugly incidence
that happened in Bagana but it amounts to the gravest crime to humanity
if this sad occurrence is swept under the rug for political gain. As
opined earlier, blame game is a deviating apparatus which cannot yield
any positive results rather it would further escalate the crisis because
actors would flex the best muscles of their political power to win
sympathy or apathy while the crisis reoccur.
Secondly, blame game can
also divert the attention of the government which is supposed to be the
most effective arm to quench the inferno. Above all, no leader or
leaders should toil with the cry of the masses because it is the
fundamental route to future crisis.
I commiserate with the good people
of Bagana at such a critical time. We must all be security conscious by
avoiding the pathway leading to future crisis but embrace the best icon
of peace which is the greatest asset of development in every nation.
No
group or individual should sabotage any prudent effort aimed at burying
the long term differences because terrorism is not restricted to a
particular location, it is Bagana today; tomorrow it can happen in your
location.
-Ajogwu Jerry Ochada
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