Index to Nigerian Newspapers

Bishop William Avenya of Gboko Diocese in Benue State has urged Tiv people to discard the culture of burying the dead in their compounds in order to curb terminal illnesses such as cancer, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. He advised them to reserve family lands in all their settlements for use as cemeteries, away from their sources of water.

The Zeje of Bassa Land in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Austine Abaji Agaba, has called on sons and daughters of Bassa ethnic nationality and other indigenes of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to maintain the cultural heritage of their people. However, Agaba made the call during a display of cultural heritage by the FCT chapter of Bassa Cultural DevelopmentUnion (BCDU),held in Gwagwalada, Abuja at the weekend. The royal father explained that the event, with the theme: ''Cultural Heritage: As a Panacea for the Unity of Bassa Nation,'' was meant to showcase the rich cultural heritage of bassa People, as one of the indegenous people of the FCT. The general manager of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), community and social development project, Dr Shuaibu Adamu, explained that one of Basa cultural dance called Uguwunu dance, is a cultural dance usualy dislayed during special occassions, such as festivals, while the Araga dance, is displayed when an elderly person dies, even as E'ke dance are displayed for entertaiment purposes.