Tiv Group Raises Alarm over Renewed Attacks in Taraba, Seeks Urgent Government Intervention
By Our Correspondent
The Mzough U Tiv (MUT), Taraba State Chapter, has raised fresh concerns over what it described as persistent and escalating attacks on Tiv communities in Takum and Donga Local Government Areas of the state, calling for urgent and decisive intervention by both the state and federal governments.
In a statement issued on Friday in Jalingo, the group alleged that armed assailants, identified as Fulani militias, have continued to invade and occupy several Tiv communities, particularly Tor Damsa and surrounding settlements in Akate Ward of Donga LGA, as well as Chanchanji and Amadu areas in Takum LGA.
The statement, signed by the President of the association, Professor Hemen Agere, expressed disappointment that the attacks have persisted despite recent assurances by the Taraba State Governor, Dr. Agbu Kefas, that security would be restored and internally displaced persons (IDPs) returned safely to their homes.
According to the group, the governor had, on March 3, 2026, visited IDP camps in Abako and Chanchanji alongside the Governor of Benue State, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, where he pledged to end the violence and provide relief support to affected communities.
MUT, however, lamented that rather than abating, the situation has worsened, noting that five persons, including four police officers and a military personnel, were recently killed while responding to an attack in Tor Damsa.
The group further claimed that armed attackers currently occupy a significant portion of Tiv ancestral lands in the Southern Senatorial District, thereby preventing displaced persons from returning to their communities.
It warned that the continued violence has triggered a growing humanitarian crisis, with thousands of residents displaced and facing acute shortages of food, shelter, and medical care.
While acknowledging the state government’s distribution of rice and maize to affected persons, the group described the intervention as inadequate, given the scale of displacement, which it put at over 150,000 persons across the affected areas.
MUT also alleged that more than 350 persons have been killed within the last six months, while over 2,000 villages and at least 12 churches have been destroyed in the attacks.
The group expressed concern that despite the establishment of a peace committee, tangible results have yet to be recorded, as incidents of violence and destruction reportedly continue unabated.
It, therefore, called on the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to urgently intervene to avert a looming humanitarian disaster, particularly with the approach of the rainy season.
The association further urged both the federal and state governments to intensify security operations in the affected areas, flush out the attackers, and create conditions that would enable displaced persons to return home and rebuild their livelihoods.
MUT also appealed to well-meaning individuals and organisations to support victims of the crisis through humanitarian and psychosocial assistance.
The group stressed that without immediate and coordinated action, the situation could deteriorate further, with far-reaching humanitarian and security implications for the state.
