Coalition urge Tinubu to appoints Jisalo as FCT minister

By Abubakar Yunusa

The Resource Centre for Human Rights & Civic Education (CHRICED), in collaboration with Journalists Network for Indigenous People, and Lawyers Network for Indigenous Peoples on Tuesday called on President Bola Tinubu to appoint Hon. Zephaniah Jisalo, as Minister-designate as a minister of Federal Capital Territory FCT, to enable him to preside over the affairs of his people.
The appeal was made in a joint press conference held in Abuja on Tuesday, ahead of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, designated by the United Nations for August 9, 2023.
Executive Director of CHRICED,Dr. Ibrahim M. Zikirullahi, who read the text before journalists, said,explained that the appointment would assuage the feeling of alienation experienced by the Original Inhabitants (OIs), who have been denied the right to elect a governor and state house of assembly over the years.
According to him ,despite the commendable nomination and successful screening of Jisalo, an FCT indigene, for a ministerial position, greater strides were necessary to address the decades-long violation of the rights of the Original Inhabitants (OIs) in the FCT.
“Appointing Jisalo will reduce the feeling of alienation by the Original Inhabitants whose right to elect a governor and state house of assembly has been denied over the years.
“We thank President Ahmed Bola Tinubu for listening to the aspirations of OIs, but we encourage him to go a step further and appoint Hon. Jisalo as FCT Minister to preside over the affairs of his people”
The group used the opportunity of the upcoming International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples to intensify advocacy against the Nigerian State’s violation of indigenous peoples’ rights.
It also highlighted the unresolved issues regarding land rights, political representation, and cultural preservation that continue to afflict the FCT OIs.
The delegation therefore sought the United Nations’ commitments to protect the rights of OIs and the nomination of Jissalo coming at the heel of that journey, is commendable, and it represents a bold first step towards addressing the decades-long injustices, marginalization, and exclusion of the Original Inhabitants .