MOTION ON COMMUNAL BOUNDARY CRISIS ARISING FROM NON DELIMITATION OF NIGERIAN INTERNAL BOUNDARIES
Sponsor – Sen. Gershom Bassey
NOTES that Nigerian borders are afflicted by a multitude of boundary crisis that straddle villages and cause loss of lives and property;
FURTHER NOTES that farmlands and the use of land mass as means of revenue allocation in Nigeria is a major factor contributing to boundary disputes;
AWARE that the core mandate of the National Boundary Commission is to define and delimitate boundaries between states, LGA’s or communities in the federation and between Nigeria and her neighbors in accordance with delimitation instruments or documents established for that purpose;
WORRIED that despite the National Boundary Commission’s mandate, close to 150 active border disputes resulting from non-delimitation of boundaries exist within and between states across the country;
FURTHER WORRIED that territorial disputes over possession and control of land between communities leading to loss of lives and property is on the increase in Nigeria;
DISTURBED that the National Boundary Commission’s intervention in the settlement of boundary crisis in Nigeria, even after judgments of the Supreme Court, is always belated and comes after loss of human lives and property;
RECOGNISES that a proactive and effective delimitation of Nigerian internal boundaries by the National Boundary Commission will forestall incessant boundary disputes in Nigeria.
Accordingly resolves to:
Urge the National Boundary Commission to take immediate steps to stop the many lingering boundary disputes by clearly delineating Nigerian internal boundaries.
