that it was engaged in this war to help the Afizere, who lived in the Shere hills 24 kilometers to the North-east of Du.” – Encyclopaedia Britannica, Volume 3 (Balfour to Both), citing page 703 thus: “Berom, a small but politically prominent heterogeneous people of the Jos Plateau, Nigeria, about 60,000 population, and many respects representative of the societies that comprise the Nigeria pagan (i.e., neither Muslim nor Christians Middle belt... a naked people and subsistence farmers, the Berom were nonetheless unmatched horsemen, and defended themselves successfully against the Muslim Hausa and Fulani slave bidders through the 19th century.” The commission observed that some Hausa-Fulani witnesses, particularly those who represented the JDA at the inquiry, acknowledged the rule of Berom chieftains in Jos, either as Sarkin Jos or Gbong Gwom Jos, for 40 years. The incumbent Gbong Gwom Jos is also Berom. The Hausa-Fulani upheld the peaceful nature of their Jasawa organization and the heroic qualities of their forefathers and rulers, as “neither fanatical nor hegemonic.” They refuted vehemently police and Jarawa accusations of exhibiting the “bellicose” disposition that led to the April riots. The Hausa-Fulani submitted on their own behalf seven Gazettes of Northern Provinces of Nigeria dating from 1920 where they were mentioned as indigenous people in Muri, Kastina, Sokoto, Zaria, Bauchi, Kano and Yola. In oral and written evidence presented to the commission, the Hausa-Fulani submitted the following information. Between 1902 and 1947, when Jos Hausa (Jasawa) were appointed Sarki Jos, the Berom had little relevance in Jos. Prior to independence, the Jasawa represented Jos politically, including Alhaji Garba Baka-Zuwa-Jere, the first elected representative of Jos in the Northern Regional Assembly, and Alhaji Isa Haruna, who represented Jos in the pre-independence conference. The Hausi-Fulani indicated that during the run-up to the Second Republic, Alhaji Audu Danladi was nominated to the Constituent Assembly. In the Second Republic, Alhaji Salihu Malumbo, Inuwa Addah, and Inuwa Anacha represented Jos in the Plateau State House of Assembly while Alhaji Inuwa Aliyu and Baba Akawu represented Jos in the Federal House of Representatives. Furthermore, the Hausa-Fulani cited the Jasawa leadership in the council membership of earlier Jos Local Governments, citing the Jasawa ethnicity of the Executive Chairman and of 8 of the 14 elected Councilors after the Jos North Local Government elections in 1991. The Hausa considered that D.B. Zang was the first Berom political leader to be elected to Northern Regional House representing mining interests in 1950. Therefore, they rejected being classified as “settlers” or “non-indigenes.”
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