Tsobo Youths Reject “Inciteful Lies,” Demand Justice Over Attacks and Historical Distortion
By Matthew Eloyi
The Tsobo Youth Development Association has strongly condemned what it describes as a dangerous and false narrative targeting the Tsobo people, following the publication of a provocative article on the Facebook page “Adamawa State Politics 2027 Open Mind.”
The article in question reportedly claimed that Tsobo settlements in Lamurde Local Government Area were merely “farms” allocated to them and went further to suggest that the Tsobo people are “troublesome” migrants from the mountains who should be confined to areas such as Wami and Tipto.
In a press statement titled “RE: Down the Memory Lane,” the Tsobo Youth Development Association described the claims as “misleading and inflammatory,” warning that such revisionist history is a recipe for communal unrest.
“We strongly suspect that this deliberate distortion of history is intended to incite violence,” the group stated. “Indeed, this false version of history appears to have been used to inflame passions among some Bachama youths in Waduku, who attacked a Tsobo youth leader and three other youths working on their farms on 5th July 2025.”
The group further alleged that two days later, on July 7, around 5:00 a.m., Bachama youths attempted to burn down Wami Two, a Tsobo settlement near Rigange. The attempt, they said, was foiled by Tsobo youths who had been on alert due to recent tensions. The attack, along with the earlier incident in Waduku, was reported to the Tingno Divisional Police Headquarters.
For clarity, the association called on the public and researchers to consult “Tsobo People of Adamawa State” by Dr. J. P. Dada, a respected non-Tsobo historian, for an accurate account of the Tsobo people’s origins and contributions to the region.
While calling out the misinformation, the Tsobo youths made it clear that they do not believe the inflammatory article reflects the views of all Bachama people. “Every honest Bachama man or woman knows the true history of the Tsobo people,” the statement noted.
Read Also: “We Are Not Strangers, We Are Tsobo”: Indigenous Group Counters Historical Distortion in Adamawa
The group also pushed back against claims that the Tsobo are “troublesome,” citing decades of peaceful existence and political restraint, despite being the most populous group in Lamurde LGA.
“We have never produced a Local Government Chairman, Member of the House of Assembly, or Commissioner,” the statement read. “We have the largest voting population but are allocated only two wards instead of the four we rightly deserve. Yet, we continue to live peacefully, even under the leadership of the Bachama King—despite our own legitimate claim to traditional leadership recognition.”
The association emphasized that while the Tsobo people are committed to peace, they will not allow their identity and ancestral history to be erased through misinformation and systemic marginalization.
They called on His Excellency, Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, to intervene by setting up an independent panel of enquiry to uncover the facts and chart a path toward lasting peace in Lamurde and the wider Numan Federation.
“We trust in His Excellency’s proven integrity and believe he will act to ensure justice and lasting peace,” the group concluded.