Christians flee Kano

Christians and non-indigenes have been fleeing the northern city of Kano for fear that the Muslim festival of Eid-ul-Kebir later this month might be accompanied by unrest, AFP reported on Wednesday.

At the same time, Muslims in the southeast have been heading north for fear that violence in northern cities would again spark retaliation against them.

The fears have been spurred by the recent killing of some 400 people, mostly Christians, in the northern city of Kaduna and a similar number, mainly Muslims, in the southern city of Aba.

AFP reported that hundreds of passengers bound for the southeast boarded vehicles at bus stations in the Sabon Gari District of Kano, which has the highest concentration of Igbos (a southeastern ethnic group) in the town. Bus operators, mostly Igbos, slashed transport fares by half to ease the burden on travellers.

Most Igbo-owned shops have been closed this week, bringing commercial activity to a low ebb, AFP reported, adding that banks in Kano had reported panic withdrawals since the religious unrest in Kaduna two weeks ago.

In response to the prevailing climate of fear, Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso has cancelled his plans to go on a Holy pilgrimage to Mecca, AFP said.

For their part, Muslims have been leaving the southeastern city of Port Harcourt in anticipation of retaliation should more violence break out in the north. The information and research coordinator at the Centre for Responsive Politics in Port Harcourt city, Temple Ayasuk, told IRIN on Wednesday that an average of 500 northerners had been leaving the city each day.

“All Igbo-owned luxury buses are fully booked,” he said. However, he said, calm prevailed in Port Harcourt, which probably has the largest concentration of northerners in the southeast.

Officials of Nigeria’s southern and eastern states say they have taken measures to ensure the safety of all northern residents in their areas.