Crossing Over To Taraba

There is no gainsaying that in Nigeria, statistics make little or no meaning to us. Managing demographics has always been taken for granted. Meet an average immigration officer to give u the number of people who come into Nigeria through any of the borders and you will be shocked with the answer that will be provided. If the Federal Government does not take the movement of people seriously then its easy to guess what states are doing. These days i see immigration officers on our roads in Taraba but i don't actually know what they do on those roads. The only difference i notice is that most at times, they do not extort money from commuters like the military or police. Supposing i want to know how many new persons have come into Taraba to settle in Bali, Gassol, Gashaka, Donga, Ibi, Takum and wukari since April 2014, who do i contact? Supposing i want to know their nationalities who can provide such information for me? Ironically these movements continue to take place everyday in Taraba State. I keep wondering where lie the "yan ci Ranis" in our demographic studies. Could they be compared to the gypsies in Europe? How are these 'ci ranis' monitored? But this a country that wants to be taken serious in its fight against insurgency. Still a long walk to freedom, unless we take the movement of people more seriously.
My worry aggravates when i remember that the land that belongs to the local tribes is confiscated by the local 'dekechis' and mai anguwas in lieu of money and given to these fellow whose origin remain Uncertain. Is it that the local tribes like the Tivs have no need of the land again? No doubt, the Nigerian constitution allows for Nigerians to live in any part of Nigeria. But the movements should be done within the ambience of the law. Come to think of it. Why is it always so difficult making claim to land in the far northern states even when it is meant to serve religious purposes, but when people come into Taraba they get land on the platter of gold? Is the constitution meant to work only in a state like Taraba? These are issues that most be addressed with every sense of sincerity by our leaders.
If our state and national borders would continue to be porous then lets be prepared for something worse than boko haram. When 'yan cin ranis' always have a field day, then u can be sure that we are sitting on a greater keg of gun powder.
Now, back to the problem of data collection. Do we have a national data base in this country? I hear the current government intends to convert 500,000 graduates to teachers. How shall we arrive at these people? What will be the criteria? Indigeneship? Political affiliation? Duration in the labour market after graduation? Will it be left in the hands of politicians again like Sure P? how do we avoid nepotism? How do we avoid duplicity and ghost teachers ? What about the social safety Scheme? What criteria would be used to determine who is poor and worthy of the package? I leave that to the administrative acumen of chris Ngige and co. But for once lets take our demographics serious! By Mark Shimave.