Inter/Intra State Communal Conflict and Conflict Management in Cross River and Ebonyi States of Nigeria

  • Simon Sampson Akam Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps
  • Mbeh Ignatius Ojen Cross River State ministry of Youth development and Skill Acquisition
Keywords: Conflict Management, security committee, Communal Conflicts, Cross River, Ebonyi, mediation

Abstract

Inter/intra-state communal conflict between Cross River and Ebonyi States of Nigeria has been on the increase with adverse consequences on the destruction of lives and properties. The most adverse effect is that, as a result of it frequency, many people have been rendered homeless while the effort to return back to their society of ancestry has been ruined. Several resolutions by both states through judiciary proceedings and National Boundary Commission are still ineffective and even when such subsist; it is usually a temporal solution to the problem. This paper aims to examine inter/intra-state communal conflict in Nigeria with focus on Cross River and Ebonyi states of Nigeria. The study specifically examined the strategies put in place to resolve communal conflict between Adadama in Abi and Ipolo community in Yala Local Government of Cross River State and Amagu in Ikwoh and Ndiagu in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi state to provide remedial alternative for sustainable peaceful coexistence among these disputant areas of the two states. The paperis an in-depth exploration of the phenomenon under study. Primary data was collected and used for the study. The paper examined causes of communal conflict between the two states, role of NBC, INEC and NPC, internal conflict resolution between the two states, role of religious leaders, effect of the conflict of lives and property and way out of theses frequent conflict. From the study, it was recommended that NBC should revisit the Surv. Akinyemi-led JFT report of 2000 and use the GPS positions of the ten (10) pillars found on ground to retrace and re-established the Adadama/lkwo boundary as it has been observed the Amagu people have destroyed the remaining pillars during the recent crisis even at the Okpitumo axis which had been intact. The same Report should be applied to re-establish the Cross River /Ebonyi Inter-state boundary at other sectors namely: Obubra/lkwo, Obubra/Abakaliki and Yala /Izzi. Through these measures, conflict can be resolved and managed in the two states.

Published
2020-07-19
How to Cite
Akam, S. S., & Ojen, M. I. (2020). Inter/Intra State Communal Conflict and Conflict Management in Cross River and Ebonyi States of Nigeria. ESUT JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, 5(1). Retrieved from https://esutjss.com/index.php/ESUTJSS/article/view/33
Section
Articles