The Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, has
inaugurated a 10-man judicial commission of inquiry to investigate the
incessant communal crises in Kajuru, Kachia and Chikun Local Government
Areas of the state.
Speaking at the inauguration of the panel on Wednesday at the
Government House in Kaduna, el-Rufai charged the commission to investigate and
identify the causes of instances of crises from 2017 to date in Kajuru, Kachia,
Chikun LGAs and surrounding communities.
Kajuru was plunged into crisis that lasted for more than
three months, leading to massive killings and destruction of properties.
The victims, many of whom were displaced from their homes,
are barely recovering from the crisis.
El-Rufai urged the panel to “identify individuals,
traditional and religious institutions, and other associations that might have
contributed to the build-up of the disturbances, and recommend further action
by the state government.
He told them to “assess and determine the extent of
loss of lives and property and other forms of damage caused during the disturbances,
and identify the perpetrators of the dastardly acts for further action by the
state government.
“Make any other recommendations to the government consequential to
or related to any or all these terms of reference, and also recommend
appropriate legal and other actions to be taken against those responsible for
the disturbances.”
The governor further mandated the commission to make
appropriate recommendations to the government on steps to be taken to forestall
future occurrence of such disturbances.
The commission was given three months within which to
conclude its assignment.
The governor said violent conflict has divided communities in
Kajuru LGA, noting that in 2018, there were two major convulsions in that axis,
which sometimes resulted in spillover into neighbouring places, including
Kaduna metropolis, as was witnessed in October 2018.
“This year alone, mass killings and displacement of people
were reported in communities within Kajuru LGA in February and March.
“Amid the contending narratives by the parties involved in
the conflict, the state government is convinced that building sustainable peace
in the area requires that all the facts around the episodes of the violent
conflict be established.
“Therefore, while visiting Karamai community in
Kajuru LGA on March 2, 2019, I announced that the Kaduna State Government had
decided to establish a Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the communal
conflict in Kajuru LGA,” he said.
According to the governor, members of the
commission were chosen for this very difficult assignment due to their in-depth
knowledge of the state and expertise in
the areas of security management, conflict and peace-building as well their
established objectivity in assessment of situations and people.
He said: “One of the problems that has driven
conflict in Kaduna State is that people have taken sides in these conflicts-not
based on reason but along ethnic or religious lines.
“We are confident that from the track record of the
chairman and members of the commission, you are well above that.
“We have selected the members from all parts of the
country, but with in-depth knowledge of the state, because we believe that the
conflict in Kajuru and surrounding areas is of interest to the entire country.
”It is therefore our hope that community leaders will
encourage people to lift their gaze above division; to embrace a common
humanity and respect the right of everyone to life, liberty and legitimate
livelihoods.”
The commission is headed by Justice Isa Aliyu, a judge of the
Kaduna State High Court, while other members of the commission are AVM
Abdullahi Shehu (rtd), Mr. B. C. Osuji, who served in the Kaduna State Command
of the SSS as an Assistant Director; U. U. Shehu, a retired Assistant Inspector
General of Police (AIG), who once served as police commissioner in Kaduna
State; Mrs. Hannatu Ugah, a retired Head of Service in the state, and Rear
Admiral Ferguson Bobai (rtd) among others.
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