In Kachia Local Government Area, a journey that should take less than half an hour has turned into a corridor of fear and abandonment. The road leading to Awon, a village about a 25-minute drive from Kachia town, tells the story of a region slowly emptied by persistent bandit attacks, killings, and kidnappings.
What used to be a chain of living communities is now largely a stretch of deserted settlements.
A Road Lined With Empty Villages
Anyone traveling from Kachia to Awon passes through several villages that once thrived with farming families and daily activity. Today, many of them stand silent.
The first stop along the route is Ankwa, one of the few villages that still has residents, even though it continues to face repeated attacks. Beyond Ankwa lies Ungwa Pah Hanya, a community that has already been abandoned.
The pattern continues:
- Akwaya Hanya – abandoned
- Mararaban Pati – deserted
- Mararaban Gora – largely empty
- Ungwan Sayal – no residents remain
- Ungwan Rimi – abandoned
- Ungwan Rumada – abandoned
- Ungwan Aforu – abandoned
After passing through this haunting chain of empty settlements, the road finally leads to Awon, where a small population still holds on despite the dangers.
Life Under Constant Threat
Awon itself has not been spared from the violence. The village has suffered attacks, deaths, and kidnappings over the years.
One of the most shocking incidents occurred in 2023, when eight students were kidnapped from Awon Secondary School. The school, located on the edge of the village, has since been abandoned due to security concerns.
Today, some secondary school students in the community attend classes in the village primary school, the only place considered relatively safe.
Villages Visited Only in Daylight
In some of the abandoned communities along the road, former residents occasionally return during the afternoon to check their homes or farms. But they never stay long.
By evening, they leave again—knowing that remaining overnight could put their lives at risk.
Beyond the villages listed along the Awon road, dozens of other communities across the area have also been deserted. Many displaced families have moved to Awon, Ankwa, or Kachia town, seeking safety wherever it can be found.
A Road That Requires Military Escort
The security situation has deteriorated to the point where residents of Awon, Akwando, Igoh, and other surrounding villages often rely on the Nigerian military for protection when traveling to Kachia.
When available, soldiers provide armed escorts along the road, allowing villagers to move in and out safely.
But when the escort is not available, movement becomes almost impossible.
In those moments, the people of these villages effectively become prisoners in their own communities, unable to travel for trade, education, healthcare, or daily necessities without risking their lives.
A Silent Crisis
The story of the Awon road reflects a wider crisis affecting rural communities across parts of Kaduna State. Entire settlements are disappearing, leaving behind empty homes, abandoned schools, and silent farmlands.
For those who remain, survival has become a daily calculation between staying in their ancestral homes and risking attack—or leaving everything behind.
Until lasting security returns to the area, the 25-minute road to Awon will remain more than just a journey between villages.
It will remain a reminder of communities slowly erased by insecurity.
By SKVoice
