Middle Belt and Niger Delta youths have described attacks on communities in the two regions as ethnic cleansing and quest to dispossess them of their ancestral lands.

They have, therefore, warned traditional rulers not to sign off any land to herders under any guise.

Speaking at a joint world press conference in Jos, the youths under the aegis of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) also threatened to recall any of their elected representatives in the National Assembly who failed to speak up against the spate of Killings in the two regions.

National Youth Leader, MBF, Brent Kane and his PANDEF counterpart, Chief Donben Donyegha, who jointly addressed the press, said they were angry with what they described as escalating tragedy of engineered genocide and marginalisation of their people and brutal attack on their ancestral lands and basis of their existence, claiming that no fewer than 1,100 persons have been killed in the Middle Belt since January, 2025

They described the RUGA scheme under the guise National Livestock Transformation Programme (NLTP) as attempts to dispossess them of their lands, insisting that their ancestral lands were not for sale.

The text of the briefing read: “RUGA is an unacceptable programme rooted in ethnic domination and territorial conquest. These programs aim to seize our land, reward terror and displace indigenous populations. It was conceived with little or no consultation with the critical Stakeholders of the Middle. Instead, those that the government can bully, compromise and intimidate were cherry-picked for discussions.

“Our ancestral lands are under brutal attack, and our very future hangs in the balance. Regrettably, instead of receiving empathy and decisive action from the government against these terrorists, we are witnessing the implementation of policies and programs that will further exacerbate the suffering of the Middle Belt, unleashing even greater cruelty.

“If left unchecked, this genocide poses an existential threat not only to the Middle Belt but also to the Southern region, particularly the Niger Delta, where the consequences of inaction will be catastrophic.

“We urge the government to take immediate and decisive action to halt this genocide and ensure the safety and dignity of our people.

“We categorically reject the disguised ‘RUGA’ project now dressed as National Livestock Transformation Programme (NLTP). It is an unacceptable programme rooted in ethnic domination and territorial conquest.

“These programmes aim to seize our land, reward terror, and displace indigenous populations. It was conceived with little or no consultation with the critical Stakeholders of the Middle. Instead, those that the government can bully, compromise and intimidate were cherry picked for discussions.

They called for immediate return of occupied Lands and “condemn violent and murderous land grabbing by armed Fulani herdsmen and jihadist militias across states and sections of the Middle Belt. We demand reversal of illegal renaming of villages and towns that were brutally taken from our people by state pampered armed Fulani terrorists.

“The Middle Belt is not for sale. We will no longer tolerate genocide against our people. If the government continues its weak handling of Fulani expansionism, we will pursue all lawful means, including international legal action and mass resistance, to defend our land and future. Enough is enough.” (Daily Sun)

• The Joint World Press Conference of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) held recently in Jos