"Establishing Sayawa Chiefdom headquarters in Tafawa-Balewa recipe for conflict" NSCIA rejects Governor Bala’s plan

T The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), led by the Sultan of Sokoto, has strongly objected to Governor Bala AbdulKadir Muhammad’s plan to establish the headquarters of the Sayawa Chiefdom in Tafawa-Balewa. The Council argues that the decision threatens the fragile peace in the region and could reignite long-standing ethno-religious tensions.

In a statement signed by Professor Is-haq Oloyede, Secretary-General of the NSCIA, the Council highlighted that Tafawa-Balewa has been plagued by intermittent crises since 1991. It noted that while various governors have worked to restore peace, “it is, in a way, peace of the graveyard since Muslims have been completely displaced from the town for about 14 years now.”

The NSCIA pointed out that the Bauchi Emirate Council and the Muslim Community of Tafawa-Balewa had both accepted the creation of the Sayawa Chiefdom but firmly opposed siting its headquarters in the troubled town. The Council emphasized: “All Committees appointed by successive regimes in the State consistently recommended the siting of the Chiefdom in Bogoro.”

Referencing historical context, the NSCIA stated that Tafawa-Balewa was founded by the Fulanis over four centuries ago, long before the Sayawa settled there in the 1960s. The statement stressed: “Morally, after perpetrating series of aggression against Muslims and killing hundreds of them in the town, nobody in his right conscience would think of offering it to them as the headquarters of their Chiefdom.”

The Council warned that pushing ahead with the plan risks inflaming tensions, describing it as “not in the interest of peace, nor is it in consonance with the principle of justice and moral rectitude.”

Concluding its statement, the NSCIA made a clear call to action: “The Council unequivocally rejects the plan of the governor to site the headquarters of the Sayawa Chiefdom in Tafawa-Balewa because it is a recipe for ethno-religious conflicts.”

The Council urged Governor Bala Muhammad to reconsider and pursue options that promote justice, equity, and lasting peace.