Kuchicheb Festival: The Challenges of Cultural Genocide in Nigeria’s Takum Chiefdom

Cultural policy in Nigeria allows each ethno-religious group to practice its culture. But genocide tendencies have constituted a challenge to the Kuchicheb cultural festival celebrated by Kuteb people in Takum Chiefdom, Southern Taraba State Nigeria. This initial challenge to one ethnic group later resulted to challenges to other ethnic groups whenever they also wish to celebrate their cultural festivals. The questions which this paper seeks to determine their answers are: How is Kuchicheb cultural festival celebrated? Why has it tuned to be an avenue to fight and kill? Are there remote and immediate causes which the Government has resolved or failed to resolve? This paper found that in Takum Chiefdom the Government is not positive in implementing Nigeria’s Cultural Policy which says Government should promote the culture of all groups in Nigeria. This paper recommends that the Taraba State Government should not be seen to encourage cultural genocide in Taraba State. As such the remote cause of the conflict should be solved and the suspension of celebration of cultural festivals in Takum be lifted.