Taraba community drags Gumti National Park, ANI, others to court over alleged threat to lives

Residents of Gashaka Gumti National Park in the Gashaka Local Government Area of Taraba State have dragged the park management before the Federal High Court, Jalingo.

They joined the African Nature’s Investors Foundation Nigeria, ANI, and the National Park Service to the suit.

The residents are seeking a N100 billion compensation over the activities of the defendants in their community.

They lamented that their activities have led to the destruction of houses and killing of domestic animals.

The community also asked the court to make a declaration that the continued bombardment and use of explosives by ANI and the Gashaka Gumti National Park rangers between February and December 2023, is illegal, unconstitutional and a breach of their fundamental rights.

Led by their counsel, Isa Jalo, they cited the alleged killings of some members of the community, Abubakar Auwal, Bello Tukur and Mohammed Bello by the ANI rangers and the Gashaka Gumti National Park rangers.

He urged the court to order the defendants to stop threatening the lives of the applicants, adding that an order stopping the defendants from evicting the applicants should be granted.

Armed with various inscriptions of placards, the residents of the community who appeared in the court premises in their numbers, said all efforts to draw the attention of both the state and the federal governments to their plights proved abortive hence their decision to approach the court.

Led by the community leader, Aliyu Jalo, they pleaded with the court to grant all their prayers in order for the community to regain their freedom from the defendants.

“We have been suffering untold hardship from these people. Since all our efforts to draw the attention of our state government and the federal government to our predicaments have failed. We have decided to drag them to court because we have the believed that the judiciary the last hope of the common man,” they said.

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