A group of peace-building and humanitarian organisations operating in Plateau State and other parts of Nigeria has bemoaned a recent fresh attack in a community in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, where no fewer than ten lives were lost.
Recall that gunmen on Sunday night killed 10 persons in an attack in Kulben, a community in Kombum District of Mangu. The armed militia reportedly attacked the community around 10 p.m. when the victims, mostly vigilantes, were patrolling the area.
It was gathered that a prompt intervention of men of Operation Safe Haven, OPSH, an internal military outfit deployed in Plateau State to maintain security, stopped more killings and reprisal attacks.
The sad development took residents by surprise given that OPSH had since restored peace not only in the area but also in the state as a whole, through engaging in some peace-building measures including parleys with stakeholders.
Reacting to the latest attack in Mangu, the coalition of peace-building groups, operating under the aegis of Conferences of Plateau State Peace Builders Network and Global Peace and Life Rescue Initiative(GOPRI), expressed sadness that some unscrupulous elements could want to set the state back on fire again despite the progress made so far by OPSH in restoring peace on the Plateau.
The coalition in a statement on Wednesday and signed by Amb. Melvin Ejeh, Executive Director of GOPRI, and Dr. Dung Bot, National Coordinator of COPPBN, described the action of the attackers as heinous and barbaric, devoid of human reasoning.
Noting that the prompt and effective intervention of OPSH halted the attacks from spreading which would have resulted in unimaginable casualty of innocent citizens, the group tasked security agencies to immediately launch a manhunt for the perpetrators to bring them to book.
The coalition thanked the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu for her generous financial, material and moral support not only to the families of the victims but also to the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs in Plateau State.
According to the group, Tuesday’s donation of N500 million to victims of the Plateau crises, to be disbursed under the Renewed Hope Initiative and Social Investment Programme, was the first for any First Lady in the history of the country.
The statement read in parts: “The Conference of Plateau State Peace Builders Network and Global Peace and Life Rescue Initiative(GOPRI), rising from its Emergency Peace Evaluations Meeting in Plateau State, condemned in the strongest terms the barbaric and senseless killing of ten men in Kulben Village of Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State on Sunday by suspected criminals herdsmen, without any known provocation.
“We are surprised that the killings came at a time when all stakeholders working for peace in Plateau State are doing everything possible to restore total peace to the general area.
” Nothing can be more animalistic and barbaric than the actions of these humans with animals heart.
“We urge the security agencies to hunt them down and bring them to account for their actions.”
On the other hand, the group hailed the First Lady for her generosity in reaching out to the families of the crises in the state.
“We wish to profoundly commend the mother of Nigeria, the First Lady of the nation, and the dear wife of our President, for her gigantic and the most empathic donations ever made by the wife of any Nigeria president’s foundation to internally displaced persons in Nigeria. We were so moved by her visit and cash donations of N500 million to victims of crises in the state. This has no doubt, further convinced us that President Bola Tinubu and his wife mean well for Nigeria,” it said.
It said: “Our investigation from the field in Mangu concerning the latest attack which took ten lives suggests an action of some criminal gang who are carrying out guerrilla attacks on unsuspecting members of the community after the deep defeat Operation Safe Haven, the military outfit saddled with internal security in Mangu melted on them.
We are confident that OPSH and other security agencies working together in Mangu will bring them to book in no distant time.
“We want to use this medium to thank the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabim Musa, the Chief of Army Staff, LT. General Taoreed Lagbaja, and other service chiefs for the massive support and attention they have given to Mangu and other local governments in Plateau since the unfortunate crisis. This has no doubt reduced the activities of the enemies of the state to almost zero, not only in Mangu but Plateau State as a whole.
“However, we passionately appeal to the Service Chiefs for more support with logistical, troops, and technological equipments to enable the military to defeat these criminal elements at once.
“We are confident that with the commitment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to sincerely fight insecurity, this menace of this mindless killings of Nigerians will be brought to an end.
“We finally wish to unapologetically commend the General Officer Commanding 3 Division, Jos, and Commander Operation Safe Haven, Major General AE Abdulsalam for being rare a gift to Plateau State and his Areas of Responsibility, AOR. His posting to the state remains a major game changer which the entire state has come to acknowledge with utmost sincerity.
“His pragmatic attitude and policy, commitment and professionalism to work as displayed by the men of OPSH have led to a massive decline in the internal security challenges in the state, We won’t forget the men of the Operation for their quick and timely response to Kulben village on Sunday. Their quick and timely response to the scene not only led to the low casualty figure but also stopped the spread and reprisal of attacks on innocent citizens.
“We are aware that some of the attackers were also gunned down during the crossfire between the military and the criminals.”
The coalition called on all communities in the state to be on high alert, tasking them to look out for any suspicious movements of some persons in their communities,
“One thing we must advise the communities to be aware of is that the military and security agencies can’t be at every doorstep or community, hence we implore them to help by providing local and credible intelligence to the security agencies for proactive actions. They must trust the security agencies, especially the military by helping them with intelligence information to enable them to carry out their constitutional duties of protecting us,” the group tasked communities in the state.
We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join LEADERSHIP NEWS on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →
Join Our WhatsApp Channel
