Constitutional lawyer, Dr. Mudiaga-Odje has called on the National Boundary Commission, NBC, to come out with a map and survey plans, which the Federal Government should gazette, designating well-identified and settled boundaries of communities in Nigeria.

“This is the gravamen of the matter, which is our collective quest and aspiration to forestall future recurrence of this kind of avoidable trajectory of tragedy.”

“The National Boundary Commission is a body established by law and vested with the exclusive authority to demarcate territories or communities within Nigeria.

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“Accordingly, we now expect a more proactive approach from the commission to establish with arithmetic certainty, all lands and boundaries of every community in Nigeria.

“It should come out with a map and survey plans, which should be gazetted by the Federal Government, reflecting such well cut out and negotiated boundaries of our communities in Nigeria.

“This will go a long way to avert future community clashes as in the Okuama/Okoloba debacle.

“Indeed, most communal crises are because of land and boundary claims. Contending communities lay claim to each other’s enclaves, especially where there is a mineral and natural resource of economic value on the land.

“These contending communities, in a bid to outwit each other, usually draw up shylock boundaries that go beyond their real territorial boundaries,” he said.

He pointed out, “Equitable demarcation and accurate boundary adjustments through negotiable settlements will forestall future communal crisis in Nigeria.”