Allawa in the pre-Colonial Era was a small settlement established by the Kaduna Gbagyi people, who migrated from the Kaduna River valley. However, by the 18th Century, the town had become a major centre for trade and commerce, attracting merchants from neighbouring regions.
Allawa by the 19th Century was a key location during the Fulani Jihad, led by Usman dan Fodio, which aimed to spread Islam in the region.
History has it that, in 1913, the British colonial administration established a district office in Allawa, making it an administrative center. While, in the 1950s and 1960s, the town experienced significant growth, driven by agricultural development, trade, and commerce. When Niger State was created in 1976, Allawa became part of the newly created Niger State of Nigeria, following the division of the North-Western State.
Prior to the recent unfortunate situation, Allawa was growing rapidly, with a strong focus on agriculture, trade, and community development.
Sadly, Allawa Town has experienced incidents of banditry, which has affected the security and well-being of residents. In recent years, Allawa Town has been on the increase in banditry cases, with reports of spontaneous and frequent attacks, kidnappings, and robberies.
The worst situation was when the military were attacked on two occasions, killing their commanders, which perhaps resulted in the withdrawal of the military detachment. The consequences were significantly monumental and devastating, as the community abandoned their ancestral land for fear of their lives. The effects are, among others: Complete displacement of the residents to various unhygienic IDPs in Erena, Kuta, Gwada; complete loss of livelihoods and inability to cultivate their farm lands; fear and psychological trauma among the locals; forceful disruption of farming activities, trade, and commerce; including complete collapse of local security architecture and lack of resources to mobilise renowned efforts.
To address this senseless backwardness, there is a need to kindly return the military detachment support to Allawa Town. This was earlier amplified by our own respected Deputy Governor of Niger State (Comrade Yakubu Garba) during his sympathy visit to the relatives of the victims that lost their lives and repeated in his capacity as the Acting Governor of Niger State during the 3-day prayers for those who lost their lives. The return of the military detachment will increase security patrols, safety, and hope that will initiate local security efforts and the return of the inhabitants to their ancestral land, consequently creating community-led initiatives for peace and rehabilitation. Thereafter, leading to effective collaboration with neighbouring towns for security networking and security agencies to curb the emergence of informers syndrome (which is now a business, unfortunately).
I humbly suggest that economic empowerment programs for the youth and vulnerable groups should immediately be formulated and pursued. Educational programs for the children in the IDPs should be formally created and given sustainable initiative. The porous borders and vast forestry terrain unmanned with the complexity of underlying social and economic issues should be critically examined and accorded technological attention. All the issues raised above also applied to its neighbouring towns, such as Bassa Town, among others, which will be my next focus in Sha Allah. May Allah make it easy for us and bring to an end these barbaric acts, Aamiin YaAllaah.
Prof. M.B. Nuhu Tachi, a distinguished academic and former commissioner for Tertiary Education in Niger State writes from Minna.