A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) has called for a sincere and far-reaching constitutional and legal reforms to address the alleged marginalisation, exclusion and repression suffered by Original Inhabitants of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Though the organisations hailed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for appointing an FCT Aborigine as minister for the first time in the fourth Republic, the coalition said there were more issues that needed urgent attention.

The executive director, Resource Centre for Human Rights; Civic Education (CHRICED), Ibrahim Zikirullahi, stated this on behalf of the coalition at a press conference in commemoration of the 2023 United Nations International Day of World Indigenous Peoples in Abuja on Tuesday.

Stressing for more inclusiveness of the FCT indigenes in governance of Nigeria, Zikirullahi urged the president to go further by appointing the FCT minister-designate, Hon. Zephaniah Jisalo as the minister of the FCT to enable him preside over the affairs of his people.

He affirmed that It was within the constitutional right of FCT indigenous Peoples to demand for their rights.

“This Coalition acknowledge the unprecedented nomination and successful screening of an FCT indigene, Hon. Zephaniah Jisalo, as Minister-designate. We thank President Ahmed Bola Tinubu for listening to the aspirations of OIs, but we encourage him to go a step further and appoint Hon. Jisalo as FCT Minister to preside over the affairs of his people. This will reduce the feeling of alienation by the Original Inhabitants whose right to elect a governor and state house of assembly has been denied over the years”, Zikirullahi stated.

The CHRICED boss observed that the ministerial slot is just one out of the several issues, which constitute the crux of the marginalization and exclusion of the indigenous peoples in the FCT.

According to him, there is the unresolved land question, which he said borders on the fairness and adequacy of compensation for the lands belonging to FCT Original Inhabitants already taken over by the government.

He added: “There Is also the unresolved question of elected state structure in the FCT to adequately accommodate the interests of the OIS and residents. This is connected to the core principle of free, prior and informed consent as enunciated in Article 10 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which makes it explicit that indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories.

“No relocation shall take place without the free, prior and informed consent of the indigenous peoples concerned and after agreement on just and fair compensation and, where possible, with the option of return.

“Also, there remains the fundamental question of political representation of FCT Original Inhabitants in the context of the wider need of a democratic sub-national, which will allow FCT Original Inhabitants to cater for their social and economic interests. It remains an anomaly that while other Nigerians have the right to vote and elect Governors and members of the State Houses of Assembly, FCT Original Inhabitants are denied this same right.

“Added to this is the imbalance in the number of legislative seats provided for the indigenous peoples in the FCT. As it stands, FCT remains in the incongruous and unacceptable situation of having only one Senate seat and two House of Reps seats, while other States, even those with less population than the FCT, have three Senate seats and scores of House of Representatives seats. Subsequently, the indigenous peoples in the FCT need sincere and far-reaching constitutional and legal reforms, which would address the structural imbalances at the heart of their marginalization and the exclusion from critical governance structures.

“Another important point to make is about Nigeria’s commitments to international treaties and obligations. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is the international legal instrument for “the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources” that has been ratified by 196 nations.” Nigeria signed in 1992 and ratified it in 1994, but Nigeria at state and Federal levels treat the CBD with contempt.

“We call on Nigeria to respect her international obligation on CBD. The Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 is an International Labour Organization Convention, also known as ILO Convention 169, or C169. It is the major binding international convention concerning indigenous peoples and tribal peoples, and a forerunner of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. We call on Nigerian government to take the necessary steps to ratify and implement the Convention.

“Finally, the Nigerian State, which took over the ancestral lands of FCT indigenous peoples owes them a duty to support the preservation of their cultural treasures and repositories. FCT indigenous peoples have rich and vibrant cultural and art forms, which cannot be allowed to go into extinction. Such cultural treasures and craft forms like pottery, and traditional clothe-making passed down from generation to generation, would be the basis for a flourishing tourism industry, if properly harnessed. These cultural treasures and repositories remain important sources of livelihoods for the indigenous population in the FCT”. (The Guardian)

•Executive director, Resource Centre for Human Rights; Civic Education (CHRICED), Ibrahim Zikirullahi (C) speakingin a press conference