23/08/2026
By Martins Abochol, Jalingo
The Ayatutu Cultural and Social Development Initiative (AYACASODI) Worldwide has accused the Taraba State Government and the Takum Local Government Chairman-elect, Hon. Bako Benjamin of sponsoring genocidal attacks on Tiv people in the Takum Local Government Area of Taraba State.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by its National President, Chief Timothy Baaki, the group condemned in the strongest terms the ongoing genocidal attacks and ethnic cleansing targeted at the Tiv people of Taraba State, particularly in Takum Local Government Area.
Baaki expressed concern over the current wave of attack where armed Fulani herdsmen and Jukun militia elements continue to massacre innocent Tiv men, women, and children.
“AYACASODI Worldwide holds the Taraba State Government and Hon. Bako Benjamin, the newly declared Chairman of Takum LGA under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), responsible for these atrocities.
“Hon. Bako is known for his open hatred, inflammatory remarks, and consistent false accusations against the Tiv ethnic group, statements that have directly fueled hate, division, and coordinated attacks against Tiv people.
” His emergence as council chairman has emboldened the perpetrators, turning Takum into a killing field on the Tiv people.
“Similarly, AYACASODI Worldwide also accuses the Chairman of Wukari Local Government Area, the Governor’s hometown, of complicity in the mass displacement of Tiv people from their ancestral lands.
“Over 90% of the Tiv population in Wukari have been forcefully displaced, their homes and farmlands destroyed, and their communities reduced to ruins.
“Reliable reports suggest that vast portions of land belonging to Tiv families are being illegally shared among sponsors and collaborators of these heinous acts, a clear indication of ethnic cleansing disguised as political and communal conflict.
“We categorically state that what is happening in Taraba State meets the clear definition of genocide as
