Human rights and civic education, activist, Dr. Ibrahim M. Zikirullahi, has highlighted the plight of the indigenous people of Abuja.
He issued a warning regarding the imminent threat of extinction facing indigenous people and their languages such as Gbagyi, Bassa, Gwandara, Koro, Ganagana, and others.
He noted that despite Supreme Court ruling there has been no restitution for lands taken from the indigenous people under Military Decree No. 6 of 1976.
Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, Zikirullahi drew global attention to the deteriorating human rights conditions affecting the Indigenous Peoples of Abuja, also referred to as the Original Inhabitants, OIs.
He noted said that more than two million Indigenous individuals in Abuja were subjected to systematic exclusion, land dispossession, political disenfranchisement, and cultural erasure.
The activist stated that since 2025, the situation for Abuja indigenes had worsened considerably.
He emphasized that the experiences of the Indigenous Peoples of Abuja highlight a continuous structural conflict, stemming from forced displacement, land appropriation, and political marginalization.
He pointed out that in the past year, numerous Indigenous communities have faced state-led demolitions of their homes, farms, and cultural sites, stating, “These actions have: rendered families homeless, destroyed ancestral compounds, disrupted traditional livelihoods, intensified fear, instability, and psychological trauma.”
“These demolitions create conditions of conflict, even in the absence of armed confrontation. They reflect global trends where Indigenous Peoples encounter violence through administrative, legal, and urban development mechanisms rather than direct military aggression.
“A true post-conflict phase has yet to emerge due to the following reasons:
