Court summons Taraba gov, service chiefs over Tiv/Jukun crisis

A federal high court in Abuja has summoned Darius Ishaku, governor of Taraba, and the service chiefs over the judicial commission of inquiry set up as a measure to resolve the lingering crisis between the Tivs and Jukuns.

The Tivs had pulled out of the panel set up by the administration of Ishaku, saying they do not have confidence in it.

Through Sebastian Hon, their lead counsel, the Tivs had  asked the panel to await the ruling of a suit it filed at the federal high court in Abuja but the commission commenced proceedings.

The Incorporated Trustees of Mzough U Tiv and five others had filed a fundamental human rights suit, accusing Ishaku of showing hatred against the Tiv people in the state.

In the fundamental human rights suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/955/2020, the plaintiffs alleged that the commission of inquiry is biased against them.

They accused the governor of using his “office and strength of the 2nd respondent (Taraba state government) in collaboration with the 13th to the 19th respondents (the service chiefs and heads of other security agencies), to forcefully/genocidally evict Tiv tribesmen from Taraba State”.

They argued that the security chiefs sued in the case are till date “aiding and abetting the 1st respondent (the governor) in the genocidal eviction of the applicants’ Tiv tribesmen from Taraba state.”

The plaintiffs also said the governor failed to mention the other communities in the written  instrument dated July 13, 2020, which was used in setting up the commission of inquiry.

They said if not restrained, the panel “is likely to breach the fundamental right to fair hearing of the applicants.”

They prayed the court to grant an order of “interim injunction restraining the 4th to the 12th respondents (chairman and members of the commission of inquiry) from sitting to conduct proceedings.

Also, they prayed for “an order of perpetual injunction restraining the 13th-19th respondents (the service chiefs, the IGP, the commandant of the Nigeria, security and civil defence corps), either by themselves or through their officers and men, from aiding and abetting or continuing to aid and abet the discriminatory policies of the 1st and 2nd respondents against the applicants/ Tiv tribe in Taraba state”

In his ruling, Ahmed Mohammed, the presiding judge, held: “I hereby make an order directing all the respondents to appear on August 26, 2020, to show cause on why the prayers being sought by the plaintiffs’ should not be granted.”