REJOINDER: Gurara State Agitation — A Struggle For Equity, Not Ethnic Or Religious Division

By JD Ephraim

NEWSDAILYNIGERIA: It is not surprising that Mr. Nura Bako Zango’s recent article sought to reframe the legitimate call for the creation of Gurara State as an “ethnic and religious” agenda.

What is surprising is the brazenness with which history is rewritten and injustices ignored in order to maintain the political and economic imbalance that has defined Kaduna State for decades.

Let us be clear from the outset: Gurara State agitation is not a campaign to exclude anyone. It is a demand for equity, justice, and fair distribution of resources in a state where institutions, appointments, and development have been disproportionately concentrated in one part largely at the expense of Southern Kaduna.

1. Concentration of State Power and Resources:

For decades, the location of key state institutions, political offices, and economic infrastructure has been overwhelmingly skewed towards one section of Kaduna State.

This is not an accident it is the direct product of a political structure inherited from colonial rule, maintained by the Fulani aristocracy, and consolidated through decades of deliberate policy choices.

The state secretariat, major parastatals, state-owned industries, the main teaching hospital, and virtually all tertiary institutions of statewide significance are located in or around Kaduna metropolis and Zaria.

Southern Kaduna contributes significantly to the state’s economy through agriculture, solid minerals, and human capital, yet development footprints remain minimal.

2. Misrepresentation of History:

Mr. Zango’s attempts to paint Southern Kaduna as a region incapable of peaceful coexistence, citing past crises without context. He ignores the fact that many of these conflicts were triggered by decades of land dispossession, political marginalisation, and violent incursions—often by armed Fulani groups into farming communities.

To claim that Southern Kaduna has been inhospitable to Hausa or Fulani communities is historically dishonest.

For centuries, we welcomed both Hausa traders and Fulani pastoralists, offering them land and trade opportunities. Kafanchan, for example, grew as a railway hub where diverse ethnicities coexisted.

That hospitality, however, has too often been repaid with attempts to dominate our political structures and erode indigenous autonomy.

3. The Hausa–Fulani Myth:

We reject the politically convenient phrase “Hausa-Fulani” as if they are a single ethnic entity. The Hausa are indigenous to Hausaland; the Fulani came later, using the banner of religion in the early 1800s to overthrow Hausa kings and entrench a feudal system.
This same system, protected by the British, was handed over to Fulani aristocrats at independence—ensuring their continued dominance over both Hausa and non Hausa populations.

Southern Kaduna was never conquered during the so-called jihad. We were incorporated through British colonial fiat, not by Fulani military might.

Our present struggle is to undo the colonial era political cage that still binds us.

4. Population Figures and Viability:

Mr. Zango’s leans on the flawed and highly disputed 2006 census to dismiss our demographic strength. He ignores that Nigeria has not conducted an accurate headcount in almost 20 years, during which our population has grown substantially. More importantly, viability is not measured by numbers alone. States like Bayelsa and Ekiti exist with smaller populations yet function effectively.

5. The Constitutional Question:

It is misleading to suggest that religion or ethnicity are “banned” as motivating factors in state creation. The Constitution merely outlines the procedure for state creation it does not prescribe what social or political grievances may inspire it.

The fact remains: our demand is anchored in the principles of federalism, equity, and fair representation.

6. Multi-Religious and Multi-Ethnic Reality:

Southern Kaduna is home to Christians, Muslims, and adherents of traditional religions. Our push for Gurara State is not to impose any religion, but to create a political space where all are equal partners not subjects of a hegemonic minority.
It is precisely because of our diversity that we know how to live together. What we reject is a structure where development is tied to loyalty to a single political or religion bloc.

7. The Selective “Federal Presence” Argument

Yes, there are some federal institutions in Southern Kaduna. But token projects cannot erase decades of systemic underinvestment. Our roads are among the worst in the state; health and education infrastructure lag far behind; and security provision is grossly inadequate despite the fact that our communities face repeated attacks.

8. Our Struggle is Democratic, Not Sectarian:

The Gurara State movement is a call for true democracy government of the people, by the people, and for the people. The current Kaduna State structure is effectively a government of the people, by the Fulani hegemonic elite, for their narrow interests. This is what we seek to change, not by violence, but by constitutional means.

Mr. Zango’s write-up reads less like a reasoned argument and more like a political defence of the status quo.

By dismissing our grievances as “ethnic” or “religious,” he hopes to delegitimise our call for justice.
However, the people of Southern Kaduna know the truth: this is about fairness, about breaking the cycle of marginalisation, and about creating a future where our children can compete as equals not as subjects in a feudal arrangement disguised as democracy.

We are not asking for Gurara State because we hate anyone. We are asking for it because we love justice.