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The Abuja Original Inhabitants have called on the federal government for land restitution and fair compensation for displaced communities, political inclusion through affirmative representation and policy reform, as well as economic empowerment through targeted investments, education, and job creation.
The call was made by Dr. Ibrahim M. Zikirullahi, the Executive Director, Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civil Education (CHRICED), at the Grand Cultural Rally of FCT Original Inhabitants commemorating the 2025 UN International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, held on Saturday at the Old Parade ground, Abuja.
The theme: “Empowering Indigenous Voice: Promoting Indigenous Rights and Preserving Culture” he said, resonates powerfully, not only with the global Indigenous struggle, but with the lived realities of the original inhabitants of the FCT.
August 09 every year has been set aside by the United Nations as the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People.
He said the gathering is not merely a celebration but a declaration.that the Indigenous Peoples of the FCT are not invisible and that their voices will no longer be silenced.
Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi said Abuja indigenes continue to face economic deprivation, locked out of the prosperity that surrounds them. “Development in the FCT has failed to uplift indigenous communities. Instead, it has deepened inequality, leaving them without access to quality education, healthcare, infrastructure, or employment”.
He said the event was to honour the nine tribes and seventeen chiefdoms whose ancestral wisdom, cultural vibrancy, and enduring resilience have shaped this land long before it became the seat of power. “We celebrate their music, their dance, their language, and their stories—woven into the very soil beneath our feet”.
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