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A group advocating a restructured and inclusive Nigeria federation, The Atunto Foundation, has strongly cautioned against any move to impose a blanket indigeneship status across Nigeria’s diverse regions.

The group warned that such a policy would disregard the country’s rich cultural diversity and could trigger a socio-political uproar.

The House of Representatives recently passed for a second reading, some bills for the amendments of certain sections of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended).

One of the bills has to do with the Indigeneship of Nigerians. Specifically, the bill is seeking for a Nigerian who has stayed for ten years in a particular place to be granted every right that an indigene of that place has.

Also, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, last week, advocated for the elimination of the policy that tends to recognise a distinction between indigenes and non-indigenes in any part of Nigeria.

However, Atunto kicked against it, maintaining that it could spark untold violence in different parts of the country.

The organization’s position was contained in a release signed by Chief Adedayo Alao, Elder E Ayiloge, and Muda Ganiyu, respectively Leader, Convener, and Director of Information.

To make itself clear, the group defined Indigenous to mean “something that originated or occurred naturally in a particular place, i.e., native. It means people inhabiting or existing in a land from the earliest times or before colonists’ arrival. It is obvious that the sponsors of the Indigeneous Bill are confusing indigeneship with citizenship”.

While acknowledging that extant confusion on citizenship and indigeneship is causing some tensions including violence in parts of the country, the group said that returning to the regional system of government will permanently solve this problem.

“Indigeneship is not merely a legal or administrative classification – it is a cultural, ancestral and communal identity,” Atunto Foundation maintains,” it said.

“Any attempt to centralize and impose a uniform definition of who qualifies as an indigene undermines the local identity, historical origin, and cultural foundations of our various communities.

“A visitor who meets certain criteria can become a permanent resident, while a permanent resident may become a citizen after meeting specific conditions, but indigeneship is restricted to people with ancestral, cultural, historical roots to the soil.”

The foundation called for a decentralized and culturally sensitive approach. Each indigenous ethnic nationality, region, or federating unit, in consultation with its traditional institutions and civil society, should be empowered to define the terms of the identity framework within its territory or region.

“This approach aligns with the principles of cooperative true federalism, where local autonomy is respected while national cohesion is fostered through mutual respect and negotiated coexistence,” it said.

“We fully support inclusivity and national unity achieved through genuine mutual respect as true unity cannot be achieved by force or through the erasure of cultural distinctions. It must be built on respect for the identities, culture, and histories of the people, and rights of all Nigerians.”

The foundatiion reaffirmed its commitment to the regionalisation of the country to foster unity rooted in justice, autonomy, and mutual respect as distinct from artificial uniformity. It also recommended a return to the Parliamentary System of Government for Nigeria.