By Nick Ibe, Abuja

The body of a boy recovered and rushed to a hospital, was confirmed dead following his bid to retrieve a shoe inside a canal.

The 14-year-old boy (identity undisclosed) met his sad fate in a canal located behind Millennium Park in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.

The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, confirmed this in a statement on Sunday, highlighting the police force’s achievements.

Iniedu noted that the incident occurred on Saturday during rainfall. The statement said:

“Police received a report that a 14-year-old boy drowned in a canal behind Millennium Park while attempting to retrieve his shoe during rainfall.

“His body was recovered and rushed to a hospital, where he was confirmed dead.”

Iniedu said the father of the deceased boy declined an autopsy, even as the police had commenced an investigation into the incident. He added:

“The father declined an autopsy and requested the release of the corpse for burial, which was granted. CID Abuja is investigating.”

MUTA: ‘Displacement does not extinguish ownership. Violence cannot become a pathway to land acquisition’

By Felix Umande

The Mutual Union of Tiv in America, MUTA, has rejected the Federal Government’s inclusion of Benue State in the pilot phase of the National Ranching Policy, describing the move as “profoundly troubling” in light of years of killings, displacement and land seizures in the state.

In a statement signed by MUTA President, Prof. Akaa Daniel Ayangeakaa, and Secretary, Prof. Joseph T. Zume, the diaspora group said government must first secure citizens, return IDPs to their ancestral homes and restore their land rights before contemplating any ranching project.

“For more than a decade, communities across Benue State have endured devastating attacks, loss of lives, destruction of homes and farms, and mass displacement associated with violent herdsmen attacks,” the statement said.
“Large numbers of our people remain uprooted from their ancestral communities and continue to live under extremely difficult conditions in internally displaced persons camps.”

Following an emergency meeting, MUTA resolved to oppose Benue’s inclusion and called on the Benue State Government, traditional institutions, elected representatives and civil society to pursue “every lawful and democratic means” to protect ancestral lands.

The group posed six direct questions to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Federal Government:

1. Why Benue? What objective criteria were used and what consultations were conducted?
2. Consent: Were Benue communities meaningfully consulted and did they consent?
3. Ownership: Who will own and operate the proposed ranches — Benue communities, government, private investors, or outside livestock owners?
4. Land source: Will any land belonging to displaced communities, or land from which communities were driven by violence, be incorporated?
5. Guarantees: What guarantees ensure displaced Benue people regain full possession of ancestral lands before any ranching project?
6. Fairness: Why should public resources support private livestock enterprises on community land when Benue farmers get no comparable allocation elsewhere?

MUTA warned that land appearing “unoccupied” because owners were displaced by violence must not be treated as vacant or available for redistribution.

“Displacement does not extinguish ownership. Violence cannot become a pathway to land acquisition,” the statement read.

The group stressed that Benue is “overwhelmingly agrarian and is nationally recognized as the Food Basket of the Nation,” adding that “land in Benue is therefore not an idle resource waiting to be allocated. It is the foundation of our people’s livelihood, heritage, security, and future.”

MUTA called on the Federal Government to suspend Benue’s participation in the pilot and instead prioritize the safe return, rehabilitation, compensation and protection of displaced communities.

It said modern ranching could be promoted “where communities voluntarily embrace them, where suitable land is legitimately available, and where participation is based on transparent agreements rather than circumstances created by insecurity and displacement.”

The union summed up its position in four demands:
SECURE OUR PEOPLE.
RETURN THE DISPLACED TO THEIR HOMES.
RESTORE THEIR ANCESTRAL LANDS.
RESPECT THE RIGHTS OF BENUE COMMUNITIES.

“No ranching policy should precede justice, security, restitution, and consent,” MUTA declared.

“Benue land is our heritage, our livelihood, and the inheritance of generations yet unborn. It must not become the price our people pay for having survived displacement.”

–Warns against taking Christians for granted

By Isa Abdul

The Senior Pastor of Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Dr. Paul Enenche, has challenged the Federal Government to conduct a credible population census that would also capture Nigerians’ religious affiliations.

The request was made by pastor Enenche during his sermon on Sunday at the church’s headquarters in Abuja.

The request was in reaction to the recent remarks credited to Islamic cleric, Sheikh Yahya Jingir, who claimed that Muslims outnumber Christians in Nigeria.

According to Enenche, the only way to settle the argument is through a credible census where Nigerians can freely identify their religion.

“If you think you are superior, why didn’t you people allow for the census all these while?”

He also warned against taking Christians and the church for granted, insisting that Christians have a significant presence across the country.

His comments have once again stirred the debate over Nigeria’s religious population and the need for an accurate national census.

What do you think? Should religion be included in Nigeria’s next population census to finally settle the debate?