Displaced Taraba Tiv women and children
Tiv women in Takum and Donga Local Government Areas of Taraba State have appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Governor Agbu Kefas to facilitate the urgent deployment of security personnel to their communities to enable them return to their farms.
The women, drawn from affected communities including Adu, Gbundu, Demevaa, Tor-Damisa and New Gboko, said their survival now hangs in the balance following sustained attacks that have displaced them from their homes since October last year.
Speaking on behalf of the group, their leader, Mrs. Msughshima Tersugh, lamented that majority of their husbands have been killed, while their means of livelihood has been destroyed by suspected Fulani militia.
She said the return of the rainy season has deepened their fears, as they are unable to cultivate crops needed to feed their children.
“We have lost our husbands, our homes and our farms. Our children are hungry and we don’t know how long we can survive like this,” she said.
Tersugh added that the women were ready to return to their communities and resume farming, but stressed that their safety must be guaranteed.
“We are pleading with the Governor and the President to help us with security so we can go back to our farms. Farming is our only means of survival,” she said.
According to her, hunger and a looming humanitarian crisis are already setting in across the affected communities.
“If we miss this farming season, then our survival is at risk. The situation is already very bad, and it may get worse,” she added.
The women expressed hope that the Taraba State Government would urgently deploy adequate security personnel to Adu, Gbundu, Demevaa and New Gboko to enable them return home without fear.
They warned that failure to act promptly could lead to severe food shortages and deepen hardship among displaced families.
