 In recent weeks, the level of insecurity in Korgi State has been alarming. On the 5th of June, many people were feared dead and several houses raised during a renewed BASA Igbura crisis in BASA local government area of the state. Well, joining us to shed more light on this is the Honourable Commissioner for Information in Korgi State, Mr Kingsley Fowler. Thank you so much, Mr Fowler, for joining us. Thank you very much for having me and good evening viewers around the world. Great. I'm super interested in the way that these attacks keep happening. In October of 2021, six persons reportedly died in a communal clash. This was reported by police. Sometime again in 2022, earlier this year, there was another clash and then a few days ago, there's another clash. Help us walk us through what exactly is the cause or is behind these communal clashes. Thank you very much. We are not comfortable with the insecurity brewing in BASA local government area. It is one of the 21 local government councils in Korgi State, so we cannot be talking about an alarming rate of insecurity in the state. We also read a lot of reports concerning the attacks and the violence there. We can report authentically that since it broke out, we have less than 10 people that we've lost. That's a very high figure because every single soul is precious to the government of Korgi State. What's actually happened in BASA has been an age-long hostility between two main tribes that constitute that local government. You have the BASA KUM and you have the GERA MOZU. These two groups have been at logger's head for years, for hundreds of years. In the last 16 years, the thing has escalated to a very high level. In 2016, November, we had a very serious crisis that the state government had to step in to be able to resolve. A lot of things have led to these hostilities, including land disputes between the two ethnic groups. It also had to do with disputes on fish ponds by the two major ethnic groups. Also, you discover that these two ethnic groups are in Nassarawa State. Whenever there is a crisis between the two ethnic groups in Nassarawa State, it was peeled to Korgi State. A lot of this has resulted into a lot of hostilities. Some are political, some are even instigated by some traditional rulers in those places. We are having a very holistic approach at the moment to ensure that anyone who is found wanting is severely dealt with. As you speak, the royal fathers of the two ethnic groups are giving very useful information to the police. As far as we are concerned, no matter who's ox is gone, we have to attack the issue with bloody-mindedness to ensure that the lives of our people are safe. I'm made to understand that there are some elders and community leaders that have been arrested in connection to all of these ethnic clashes. I'm asking because if these ethnic groups are from Nassarawa, there has to be some form of communication. Let's say a group from the state in Korgi goes to Nassarawa State to have some conversation. I'm wondering, does Korgi State have a peace or reconciliation or any committee to address the issue? Because you talked about it being an age-long issue and it has lingered for this long and now people are having to die for it. What has the government done to address these issues, no matter how pedestrian it might be? We are working on a ballistic mechanism and I would tell you that since this administration came on board, we've been able to a very large extent extend the tide of the crisis rocking that local government. The current issue has unraveled a lot of revelations and the state government is setting up mechanism to be able to attack it from the root. I am not saying that 100% discussed by some of these clashes in Nassarawa spilling over to Korgi State. We are attacking the ones that we can attack in the state and we're also setting up mechanism to be able to have this conversation across borders and we are to be able to enlighten the people in Nassarawa State of how their hostilities are already spilling to Korgi State. Korgi is known to be a very peaceful state under this administration as you can all attest to as the governor has won so many awards in ensuring peace and stability. And what we are dealing with at the moment is not about insolvency or terrorism. It's about coming up clashes and the state government is working on a lot of mechanism to be able to put this to bed. As you are aware, you are not going to serve peace. It's not going to work that way. The state government will have to work. The state government is doing that already, putting in place mechanism, putting in place apparatus to ensure that we are able to put this to bed and ensure that people in Nassarawa are safe. Talking about land because land is very important. The government is in charge of the land even though it belongs to citizens. If one of these issues is an issue of land, that's where the government should come in first, right? And help us to understand, in Nigeria we understand that these clashes happen, especially because of land. It happens between Cross River and Aqaibom, the two people and the people in Odupane, they have those issues. But then that's where the government should come in to determine where these boundaries are. That is one way to deal with the issue. And then again, you have to go to the grassroots to, like I said, get to the core. I find it difficult when governments tell us that, oh, is this man from this place that came in here to cause trouble? How secure, shouldn't your people in your state be safe and secure so much so that an outsider cannot come and disrupt the peace that you have in the land? I remember your principal had been campaigning for presidency and part of the things that he was campaigning with was that he has successfully brought peace and security to the people of Kogi State. I'm beginning to doubt that. Let me not make it as simple, but an issue as big as communal crisis and somebody coming in from another state to cause trouble in your state has not been handled for this long. And now it's claimed at least 10 lives. Should we still be discussing that now, especially at the close, almost at the close of his administration? I think we need to set the record. We are not talking about 10 lives. We are saying less than 10 lives because we are putting the figures together. And also, I have just confirmed to you that the state government has set up a team that is working very closely with the Nassarawas state government to ensure that we get to the roots of the matter from there. How long has this team been on for? How long? Let me land on this thought. We are dealing with a lot of, we are dealing with a lot of factors on this matter. It is just one of the factors. We are talking about the issue of land dispute. We are talking about issues that has to do with fish ponds. We are talking about issues as simple, as trivial, as even cultural masquerades and all of that. You know, it has to do with the stakeholders. The stakeholders in those communities. And that is why the state government ensure that they came in very strongly to bring out these stakeholders to come and answer questions with law enforcement agencies. We have also been able to put the whole thing in calm as we talk because we are able to mobilize the security architecture, the entire security architecture and minds of the security agencies in the state of the place. Among personnel carriers are there to speak and we have been able to stem the tide. The crisis has gone down significantly, but we are digging into the road because we don't want to solve it now and tomorrow to come up again. So as a very responsible administration that has won so many awards in security, we don't want these to tarnish our credentials as far as the security of lives and properties concern. And that's why we are zeroing in to ensure that everybody and anybody that has been involved in the crisis is brought to justice. Many of them have been arrested. We have been able to recover a lot of them and the people are confident today that their government, the government they elected has kept in to do its primary responsibility. We are not seeking for commendation for this. The governor stepped in. I remember that a few days ago till 2 a.m. he was still in touch with the state security advisor and all the security heads in the state to ensure that the place is peaceful. And as I'm talking to you now, it is significantly very peaceful. And you also need to understand that it's a very difficult terrain because we have to cross the river from Lokoja to get to Basah. But the people from Nassarawa can easily infiltrate and that's what we are working on with our border security agencies to ensure that we don't allow them to get into the state to prevent trouble. Going forward, just as you said, very interesting. You have said that the government is working tirelessly to make sure that this is put to bed. But then again, let's look at some of the things that are at the core of issues like this. It could be poverty. It could be ignorance. And then you have said there are some things that are as funny as culture or masquerades, which I don't think should be an issue. But what is the level of awareness or, I mean, because everybody does not have to have formal education, but is there some form of grassroots awareness program that would help the people understand that they're all together. They're one people and killing one another for land that nobody's going to go to their graves with. It should not be a thing that divides them because, of course, we already, as a country, are divided across ethnic and religious lines. What is there anything that is being done at the grassroots, whether in collaboration with local governments or even community heads? Thank you very much. The strength of our security in the state is not just because we are the unbearing security agents. It's beyond that. The strength of our security accomplishment as a government has to do with intelligence, has to do with enlightenment, has to do with the partnership between the government and the people of the state. And that has been working well for the people of the state. We have lines that even people in the villages can quickly call for them to have the intervention of security agents. And that has been working very seriously for us. If you go to the smallest village in Kogi state as a visitor today, immediately you will see that they will report your entrance to that village to the community head. You'll be screened and they will be able to find out the kind of person you are and your mission in that community. All these things have been working well. Apart from that, my ministry in the past few months had gone around the state doing a lot of sensitization and orientation. We call it the town hall meetings. We have gone around the nine federal constituencies in the state to sit down with the stakeholders, the local government administrators, traditional rulers, youth groups, women groups, and all of that. To tell them the partnership that the IABL administration has brought to be, you know, because, you know, you need to carry them along in the security architecture of the state. And that's working very well. When you're talking about poverty, but some people are some of the most resourceful people in Nigeria. You know, with the river, with the water bodies around them, they are people that are economically viable. And they are great farmers. They are great hunters. They are great fishermen and women. And that has been able to boost their economy to a very large extent. I think it has to do with the age-long hostility between the two major ethnic groups. And as far as the state government is concerned, the traditional rulers in those places have not done enough to ensure unity and peace. And that's why you got that report that the two frontline traditional rulers were brought to Lokoja and security agents were able to probe into the activities. And we have a lot of information. Anybody that's involved in that will definitely be brought to vote. You know, the Office of the State Security Advisor has been doing a lot of work and base to ensure that the people are sensitized, to ensure that the people are safe, to ensure that those who have broken the law do not go scot-free. That is what we are doing to sound the very strong funding to perpetrators of evil, not only in Bazaar, but across the state, that when you do it in Kogi State, you will not go scot-free. Honorable Commissioner for Information in Kogi State, thank you so much for speaking with us. We'll keep our eyes on that story and hopefully something good comes out of it. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. All right. Well, thank you all for staying with us. That's our show for tonight. We'll be back tomorrow talking for development. And my name is Mary Annacone. Have a good evening.