The Judicial Committee of the Northern Regional House of chiefs has unanimously declared the enskinment of Alhaji Abuba Nasinmong of the Jafok family as Bunkpurgu Na-ba as null and void.
According to the counsel, the enskinment of Chief Nasimong from the Jafok clan in 2007, was a violation of the rotational system of the Bunkpurgu skin.
The committee has further directed Jafok family to submit all chieftaincy regalia to the petitioner, the Jamong Royal family.
The Bunkpurgu chieftaincy issues started in 2007 after the death of late chief Lanbong Taankpan.
This follows the enskinment of Abuba Nasinmong as Bunkpurgu Na-ba by the Nayiri Abdulai Mahami Sheriga.
However, the enskinment process did not go down well with the Jamong royal family who petitioned the Northern Regional House of chiefs.
A fact-finding committee chaired by the Susong Lana established that the Bunkpurgu skin is patrilineal and rotational and since the late chief was from the Jafok family, it was the turn of the Jamon family to occupy the skin.
Before presenting the judgment on behalf of the committee, the Counsel, Alhaji Yakubu Abdul Fatawu appealed to the parties to let peace reign among them.
He appealed to them to seek redress instead of resorting to violence.
The Counsel ruled that the reliefs the petitioners were seeking from the committee to nullify the enskinment of Abuba Nasinmong as the chief of Bunkpurgu have been granted.
He also directed the Jamong royal family to get a successor to be presented to and enskinned by the Nayiri.
The defeated chief Abuba Nasinmong said he will confer with his lawyers on the way forward.
His lawyer, Slyvester Issang said: “although my client respects the judgement of the Judicial Committee of the Northern Regional House of Chiefs, he disagrees with the decision reached by the Committee and its reasoning thereto.”
The Bunkpurugu chieftaincy dispute has impacted negatively on the people of the area where lives and properties have been destroyed whenever tensions erupts into violent clashes.
