The attention of concerned Amasiri stakeholders has been drawn to a publication authored by Princess Onyeoma Kama, PhD, titled “Gov. Nwifuru’s Resolve to Restore Peace in Amasiri,” in which she made sweeping and misleading claims regarding the ownership of Oso and Okporojo land.
Ordinarily, historical distortions and political propaganda would not deserve a response. However, when falsehood is repeatedly presented as fact, it becomes necessary to set the record straight.
- Iran leader Khamenei killed in massive US and Israeli attack
- Over 1,000 Nigerians Killed in Two Months — Peter Obi
First and foremost, Oso and Okporojo are historically and geographically part of Amasiri. The attempt to rebrand them as exclusively belonging to Edda is not only inaccurate but a deliberate distortion of long-established realities known to elders, historians, and boundary records within the region.
The assertion that Oso, Edda predates Amasiri’s presence in the area is, at best, speculative and unsupported by universally accepted documentation, old sign posts read Oso- Amasiri. Historical narratives in inter-communal matters must be handled with caution, especially when relying on selective interpretations of colonial reports.
References to the 1930 Waddington Report or colonial administrative arrangements do not automatically extinguish indigenous boundary realities that existed before and beyond colonial documentation.
It is also misleading to suggest that Amasiri lacks legal or historical basis for its claims. Boundary issues in many parts of Nigeria were traditionally defined by natural landmarks, customary agreements, and ancestral settlements long before formal documentation. To dismiss oral history entirely is to ignore the foundational basis upon which most African communities established territorial identity.
Furthermore, branding Amasiri as expansionist and violent is unfair and inflammatory. Such language escalates tension rather than promotes reconciliation.
Both communities have experienced painful episodes, and it is neither accurate nor responsible to attribute blame solely to one side while ignoring the complexity of the dispute.
The claim that Amasiri has no boundary with Oso or Etiti Edda contradicts lived geographical realities acknowledged by generations of residents. Boundaries are not created by rhetoric; they are shaped by settlement patterns, shared markets, intermarriages, cultural interactions, and historical coexistence.
While development projects, schools, hospitals, or administrative classifications may exist in Oso, infrastructure presence does not automatically determine ancestral ownership. Government projects are not instruments of land title.
It is important to stress that the path to peace does not lie in provocative publications or historical absolutism. It lies in objective boundary verification, credible documentation, stakeholder dialogue, and impartial mediation free from political coloration.
Amasiri remains committed to peaceful coexistence and lawful resolution through the appropriate mechanisms established by the Ebonyi State Government. However, peace must be anchored on truth, fairness, and mutual respect — not unilateral narratives.
The people of Amasiri urge all parties to refrain from inflammatory statements capable of deepening division. The ongoing efforts of the state’s peace committee should be allowed to proceed without prejudicial commentary.
History should unite, not divide. And truth must never be sacrificed on the altar of sentiment or politics.