Bwari Chieftaincy tussle: Gbagyi youths kick as FCT minister presents staff of office to Sarkin Bwari
By Sadiq Abubakar, Abuja.
The Gbagyi youth natives of the Bwari area council of Abuja, have kicked against the coronation/presentation of staff of office to the second class Sarkin Bwari, Alhaji Awwal Mohammed Ijakoro, by the FCT minister Muhammad Musa Bello, slated for tomorrow Saturday.
The youth converged at the unity fountain in Abuja, to protest over the Minister’s move, carrying placards with an inscription such as “Esu of Bwari is the only king in Bwari” “We need justice” “There’s no Sarkin Bwari” Chieftaincy is not politics” FCT natives must be free” Give us what belongs to us” No two captains in one Kingdom”.
Addressing journalists, the president of Gbagyi Bwari youth, Comrade John Habila Awoyi, said the Gbagyi youth of Bwari decided to stage a peaceful protest over the move by the FCT minister Muhammad Musa Bello to coronate/ present staff of office to Sarkin Bwari, Awwal Mohammed Ijakoro.
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He said the second class Sarkin Bwari, Alhaji Awwal Mohammed Ijakoro, that is to be presented with the staff of the office is a Koro native from Niger state not a Gbagyi indigene of the Bwari area council.
He said the Gbagyi natives of Bwari had written a series of letters to both the past and present FCT ministers appealing that the Bwari chiefdom should be divided into two so that one part should be given to a Koro tribe while the second part should be given to the Gbagyi natives of Bwari.
” In Bwari, we have two kings. And the most painful part is that the second-class king is not from our tribe as he is a Koro man from Niger state. And we that are the predominantly Gbagyi people that own the land are the third class,” he said.
He said only the Bwari area council has one chiefdom while urging the FCT administration to create two chiefdoms so that the Koro people will move to their land in Niger state, and the Gbagyi people of Bwari take control of their chiefdom in FCT.
” We are not here to fight the government or anybody else, rather we are calling on well-meaning Nigerians that have sympathy for us to help us talk to the FCT minister Muhammad Musa Bello to do justice in this matter,” he said.
It will be recalled that the Sarkin Bwari, Alhaji Awwal Ijakoro, succeeded his late father Alhaji Mohammed Ijakoro after he died in 2017.
