How Bachama, Chobo relationship turned sour

The protracted land dispute, ethnic acrimony and chieftaincy tussle between Bachama and Chobo communities in Numan, Adamawa State, have assumed a fresh dimension. Both warring communities are claiming ownership of the land and chieftaincy in contention.

The Chobo, who claim to be the original inhabitants of the land, and therefore, the landlords when the Bachama arrived, argue that the ‘guests’ migrated from Sokoto, and therefore, should retrace their route back there instead of unjustifiably laying claim to the ownership of what does not belong to them.

The Bachama, however, argue that Chobo have been mountain dwellers since time immemorial; and therefore, lived on the hills in Gombe when they (Bachama) arrived the location and convinced them (Chobo) to come down; and in expression of heartfelt amity and fellowship, even leased farmlands to them to enable them build prosperous livelihoods and live in peace.

For centuries, both communities cohabited in the land in utmost harmony and mutual respect, coexisting with mutual goodwill in markets, water points, schools, hospitals, and even inter-married.

A few years ago, younger generations, ignorant of the history and affinity binding both communities, sowed a seed that has generated a raging dispute.

Many ask: What has gone awry in the centuries-old relationship of harmony, brotherhood and mutual respect and goodwill of both communities?

Investigation shows that the primary bone of contention of these conflicts is the ensuing quarrel between Chobo and two Bachama communities – Waduku and Rigange over farmlands.

This has led to a pronged tug of war, peaking at the ongoing court cases, and traditional mediation process, which has conventionally resorted to land disputes settlement over the centuries.

However, sources say that in both cases, the Chobo have allegedly been intransigent about whatever verdict passed by the traditional rulers on the matter.

According to sources, the Chobo, who observed the entire traditional ruling hierarchy as Bachama, did not see any hope for the upholding of justice and fairness on the matter; and would, therefore, not legitimise the mediation.

The Bachama, consequently regard Chobo as unyielding on peace, even when the mediation team comprised traditional, community and opinion leaders from both the Bachama and the Chobo in equal numbers.

‘Bachama must return to Sokoto’

It was also learnt that despite laying claim to certain parts of Lamurde Local Government Area, Chobo people now have a slogan, “Sokoto must go,” in other words saying the Bachama people must return to Sokoto.

They insist on the ownership of the land, which they only offered the Bachama people on the grounds of magnanimity, goodwill and fellowship.

They also argue that there are several tribes and communities that can claim ownership of those lands, other than the Bachama.

The Chobo tribe, however, queried why the Bachama have chosen to be aggressive about the ownership claims.

A Bachama traditional ruler, who is the district head of Gyawan, Dr Agoso Bamaiyi, spoke about the owner-and-settler complexity, saying the utterances could only bring confusion and problems.

“One of the utterances they have, which they are using is: ‘Sokoto must go.’ In other words, they are saying that ‘Bachama must return to Sokoto where they migrated from before coming to Numan.

“If you are asking a tribe to get up and retrace its steps back to its origin, then let this be clear: Bachama people didn’t start from Sokoto; when they came to Nigeria, they settled in Sokoto for a very long time, and because of inter tribal war and all of that, they had to move, and kept moving until they got to where they are today.

“It is the same story with almost every tribe in Nigeria; so, let’s say that we agree that everybody should return to where they started, imagine the kind of confusion and problem that would create.

“There are so many unrealistic requests the Chobo people are making. People have settled down for hundreds of years, and now, you have young people who don’t understand A or B insisting that it is their land and want to dislodge people that have been there even before the colonial masters.

“Our story goes back over 500 years and these are documented history and the Chobo people are saying we must pack and go. Where do we go to?

“The Chobo are mountain dwellers; it is the Bachama people that brought them down and settled them in the plains; and now, they are claiming that all those places are theirs,” he alleged.

Reacting, one of the Chobo youth leaders, Huler John, said all they needed was to have “Chobo Kingdom” and a clear demarcation of land with political identity.

“We would not have peace if we lived under a kingdom that is being controlled by the Bachama. We can only have peace if we have our own kingdom; and they don’t want to let us go.

“This issue of land dispute will disappear if we get our chiefdom, which will give a clear demarcation of land for Chobo,” he said.

On the ‘Sokoto must go’ slogan, he said, “It is just a provocative slogan used to mock the Bachama, just as they use derogatory songs to mock the Chobo too. But the constitution has already taken care of who is an indigene, and nobody will contest that.”

How several peace dialogues failed

Saturday, July 5 was among the many days traditional rulers from both sides sat together at Rigange town to mediate, but the deadlock outcome led to violence.

An anonymous member of the mediation team said that when the case was brought before the Chobo leaders, they actually blamed their youth for their exuberant and unreasonable actions, apologised and promised to call them to order.

However, on Monday, July 7, Chobo youths attacked Rigange and Waduku with heavy weapons and caused massive destruction, which brought a setback to the entire peace process.

They burnt down villages of Waduku and Rigange and attempted to enter Lamurde Local Government headquarters, which is said to belong to the Bachama community, but they met stiff resistance.

“Actually, that attack generated retaliations from Bachama youths, which we controlled with difficulty.

“So, the state government and security agencies waded in and imposed a 24-hour curfew. Eventually, there was forced peace, not genuine one,” said one of Bachama traditional rulers.

Recently, the Adamawa State Peace Agency came in and tried to mediate. It met with both the Bachama and the Chobo communities, as well as the Gongola People’s Forum, with the blessing of the Adamawa State Government, which was chaired by Marcus Gundiri, an engineer.

The committee held several meetings with the warring communities. However, nothing positive came out of all the mediations due to the intransigence of the youth groups of both sides, especially, the Chobo youth, as alleged.

Eventually, Governor Ahmadu Umar Fintiri stepped in and started direct mediation. He engaged Chobo community four times and Bachama community three times, but the peace dialogue ended in futility.

Finally, the governor brought them together under the coordination of the peace agency, with top government functionaries, security agencies and leaders of both the warring communities all present,

A person privy to the closed door meeting who prefers anonymity told Weekend Trust that the peace council asked both the Bachama and Chobo to present their peace conditions.

“The Bachama community presented four conditions. First, they demanded that Chobo should apologise to them for attacking their communities over the disputed farmlands. And the apology should be made to Hamma (king) of Bachama.

“Secondly, Chobo leaders should go to the palace of Hamma Bachama and reaffirm their loyalty to the Bachama traditional council because the Hamma Bachama rules over them statutorily and is recognised by the government. The Chobo had initially withdrawn their allegiance from the Hamma Bachama.

“According to them, if and when the Fintiri administration or any future administration decides to create a separate chiefdom for the Chobo, it is fine, but Chobo’s allegiance is now with Hamma Bachama.

“Thirdly, the Chobo should desist from all the inciteful statements on the social media and singing derogatory songs against Hamma Bachama and his deputy whenever they see their kinsmen.

“The fourth condition was that once all the three conditions were met, the Chobo could renegotiate their lease on farms within the Bachama community,” he said.

It was reported that the Bachama had resolved not to allow the Chobo to farm in their community. And most Chobo communities are mountain dwellers; and it is, therefore, difficult for them to find any farmland to cultivate.

“However, when Chobo people were asked to present their conditions, they dwelt much on the past crises and destruction and rejected all the conditions put on the table by the Bachama without giving any alternative.

“This happened in the presence of the governor, the peace actors; and they didn’t offer any alternative.

“One of the Chobo youth also appealed that young people from both sides should be allowed to talk together, seeking another date for a fresh meeting in their community.

“The governor approved for the meeting last Monday (state date) and guaranteed the safety of the participants in the Chobo land, but the Bachama youth leader rose without consultation or insisting on their earlier conditions.

“However, immediately after stepping out of the meeting hall, the Bachama rejected, at the doorstep of the meeting hall, the decisions reached, pointing out that if the Chobo would not attend the meeting on their land, they would equally not go to any Chobo town or village.

“They, therefore, insisted that the meeting be convened on a neutral ground,” he disclosed.

He said the stand was communicated to Governor Fintiri, who, therefore, directed that Demsa Local Government headquarters, as neutral ground, be arranged for the meeting.

“The Chobo, however, rejected the governor’s decision, arguing that Demsa people are known as Bata, arguing further that the Bata and the Bachama are kinsmen,” he said.

He noted that Chobo based their rejection on what they recalled as the founding leaders of the Bachama and the Bata were twins, arguing that although they broke up over the ages, they are still kinsmen.

Monday (state date) was slated for the meeting of the youth from both sides to be moderated by Adamawa peace actors and selected elders from both communities.

Unfortunately, from Sunday night through Monday, a clash broke out between the youth of the two communities, which scuttled the scheduled meeting.

However, on the allegation that the youth from one side (the Bachama) were allegedly insincere and uncommitted to peace, Chobo youths launched an attack on Timno Dutse market and Waduku again for the second time and even attempted to attack Rugange and Lamurde.

Fortunately, the attacks, which resulted in the killing of the unarmed women who came out to protest and prevent the military from going into Lamurde town, were foiled by Bachama youths.

“When they prevented them, the soldiers fired into the air and the gunshots scattered the unarmed women who were waving leaves and dancing.

“It was at that point that the soldiers opened fire into the crowd, resulting in the death of 10 people,  9 women and a man, with over 50 injured: broken arms and legs,” one of the traditional rulers said.

Timeline of attacks

Dispute first erupted in July 2025 when a clash between the two communities resulted in six deaths, many injuries and hundreds of homes burnt down, which forced the state government to impose a 24-hour curfew until normalcy returned.

Also, on July 15, four young farmers from Wummi village went missing on their field and their corpses were later found on the riverbank at Lau, Taraba Local Government Area, which triggered another resurgence.

Early December 2025, another violent attack occurred and escalated when Chobo-speaking tribal militias allegedly attacked Bachama communities in Tignon, Waduku and surrounding villages, killing dozens of people and destroying properties.

Also, a controversy ensued between the Nigerian Army’s 23 Brigade and the Bachama community over the killing of 9 protesting women, with the community alleging they were shot by soldiers, while the army claimed they were killed by local militias.

For those familiar with the area, the Chobo still inhabit the mountainous area and can be found in Lakan, Wammi, Sikori and other villages in Lamurde Local Government Area that extend towards the border with Gombe State.

The Bachama, on the other hand, live in the lowland areas of Rigange, Waduku, and other communities.

Both tribal communities had been coexisting like kinsmen. Both speak each other’s language.

Experts’ view on peace in Lamurde

Many people are of the view that the Bachama-Chobo conflict is a typical expression of the tribal cum ethnic communal conflicts now persistently raging all over Nigeria, with every ethnic or tribal group claiming indigeneship and ownership of the location of habitation, and asserting its unique identity and independence.

Consequently, long-standing alliances and relationships between different ethnicities that share geographical locations are now breaking up. This is exactly what is happening between Bachama and Chobo.

“The Chobo want to stand out on their own and be treated separately, but the way they are going about it has turned out to be very aggressive.

“There is a new generation of young people who have come up now and don’t understand the long-standing relationship between Chobo and Bachama; and they are very aggressive in trying to get what they think is their right.

“So, you have issues surrounding the fact that they want their chiefdom to be separate from the Bachama traditional council.

“The Bachama traditional council covers two local governments in Adamawa State: Numan and Lamurde, and the Bachama king rules over the other tribes statutorily, not self-imposed.

“So you have people like Kwa, you have some Janjon, Bandawa; the majority of Janjon and Bandawa are in Taraba, but they rule over those in Adamawa, then of course you have some Fulani, Hausa and many other tribes, including the Chobo.

“But Chobo are insisting that they should have their traditional council; unfortunately, they think it is the Bachama that would give them.

“It is the government that would create chiefdoms. There is no chiefdom that can create a chiefdom, but Chobo people don’t seem to understand that.

“The other issue is about land. Chobo people are claiming certain parts of Lamurde Local Government Area, insisting that it is their own. But other tribes and communities have been on those land for hundreds of years, including Bachama communities,” a member of the Adamawa Peace Agency said.

He noted that a solution may not be visible unless the parties are willing to follow it, adding that the ‘Sokoto must go’ slogan is not realistic.

“For there to be peace, the situation has to return to status quo. The Chobo have to stop their aggressiveness in taking over the lands, chiefdom and a separate local government area.

“They should press for their demands using due process. They should organise lobby groups and begin to pursue a chiefdom and a local government legitimately.

Christopher Sunday, the coordinator of  Community Security architecture, a body that mitigates on issues that have to do with conflict, said the communal tension would continue to linger until leaders put heads together and ensure that justice is served.

“If those who have perpetrated crime are not prosecuted,  people would accuse the government of compromise.

“If the government is not able to take action, knowing fully the names of some key actors mentioned, and nothing was done, it is fueling the crisis.

“According to the report I obtained, some of the Chobo people that rented farms for dry season farming around Waduku and Rigange vowed that they must farm this year, but the owners of the farmland said they would not allow them to farm.

“The estimated amount they rented the farms was N50 million and it has not expired, so they insisted on farming this season. That was what gave birth to the tension of December 7,” he noted.

He observed that if the government is not proactive in handling and dealing with such tensions, the crisis will continue to linger.

On what the government should do to broker peace between the warring groups, he said, “The root causes should be addressed.”

He said the Chobo talked about marginalisation in respect to political appointments and claimed to own Lamurde Local Government Area. They are not willing to be under the rulership of Hamma Bachama; they needed a chiefdom.

“If the government would look into the possibility of that, they can bring them to the table and see how they can approach it.

“Also, other root causes have to be dealt with, if not, this thing will continue to linger.

“Continued engagement and sensitisation can do a lot in solving these problems. We also have conflict merchants who take advantage of the situation and benefit from it, such as cattle rustlers.

“The issue of providing employment to the youth is also very important,” he added.

Why we refused to apologise to Hamma Bachama – Chobo youth

Speaking to our correspondent, Huber John, the councillor representing Suwa ward in Lamurde Local Government, confirmed that a meeting was convened at the instance of the governor.

He said the governor gave Bachama an opportunity to speak first on the condition that it would allow peace to rain in the area.

“The chairman of Buwate community spoke, insisting that we must apologise to the king of Buwate, we should stop the derogatory songs, and they would not allow us to irrigate our farmlands this season if we didn’t meet the conditions.

“When the governor gave us an opportunity to speak, our youth leader, Luka Elisha, said we would not apologise to Hamma Bachama because he refused to sympathise with us, which shows his support to what his kinsmen are doing to us. Is it too much for him to arrange a meeting with us to know our problem?

“About farmlands, we both have farms in the same place. If they stopped our people leasing farmlands from them, it is okay, but they don’t have the right to refuse us access to our own farms in the area.

“Also, about the derogatory songs, everyone is the culprit. If they want us to stop singing the songs, let them also stop. That was what happened,” he explained.

On why they refused to honour the offer for a meeting at a neutral ground, he said, “For us to go to Demsa from our place, we must pass through Lamurde, and the tendency of their youths attacking us is very high.

“Such attacks on our people happened on several occasions. I am also a victim. Since the last encounter we had, their people are coming into our communities and nobody is attacking them,” he said.

Asked what should be done to have a lasting peace in the area, he said, “More security operatives should be deployed for temporary solutions before the final dialogue.

“Also, giving us our own chiefdom will bring peace because that would give a clear demarcation of land and territory.

“The issue of indigene or non-indigene has been taken care of by the constitution – as long as one spent 10 years in a particular location, he is an indigene,” he said.

Dusk-to-dawn curfew enforced in Lamurde

Following the renewed communal clashes, the Adamawa State Government has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in Lamurde Local Government and its environs.

A statement by the Office of the Deputy Governor announced the 24-hour curfew on Monday and ordered residents to adhere to the directive or face the wrath of the law.

Similarly, the Adamawa State police command has announced deployment of its operational manpower and assets in enforcing the 24-hour curfew declared by the government to ensure law and order in the disputing areas of the council (Lamurde).

“The commissioner of police, Dankombo Morris, has deployed more operational assets of the command to the areas to monitor compliance and enforce the curfew using all legal means.

“The command, in collaboration with sister security agencies, while respecting the rights of citizens, equally advised them to avoid all forms of action capable of threatening security in the area.

“However, the command will not in any way allow miscreants and misguided elements to operate unchallenged despite security agents operating in such a way as not to use force to create a scenario that will lead to loss of lives while enforcing the curfew,” said the spokesman of the command, SP Suleiman Nguroje.

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