An indigenous peace building group in Plateau State has commended Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), a military outfit in the state for assuaging the plight of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), in the recent attacks in Mangu Local Government Area, by providing them relief materials.
The group expressed happiness that despite OPSH’s major assignment which is to provide security with the help of other security agencies in the state, they also had to provide social services to the people in the community.
This came as it frowned at the recent heinous killing of over 80 locals in the area, describing the act as not only barbaric but also ungodly.
But the group passed a vote of confidence on OPSH, saying contrary to unwarranted attacks against the military outfit by some agrrieved persons,the military formation has performed its work professionally.
The Jos-based non-governmental group, operating as Coalition of Plateau Peace Practitioners Advocate,COPPA, tasked the government to take deliberate action in ending the killings just as it urged security agencies, especially OPSH to go after the perpetrators with a view to bringing them to face the wrath of the law over the ugly act.
In a statement on Tuesday,signed by its National Coordinator, Rev. Elisha Gyang and National Secretary, Dr Gabriel Bulus kombu,COPPA said the dastardly act was a setback to the hard earned peace in the state, insisting that the perpetrators must face the consequences of their action.
The group bemoaned the statement against security agencies by the state governor, Simon Lalong, saying the statement was not only reckless but unbecoming of a state chief security officer who should have known the workings of security agencies better than ordinary citizens.
It called on the federal government, especially the military high command to ignore recent calls by some persons it considered,that OPSH be taken out of the state.
“For those calling for the removal of Operation Safe Haven from Plateau State,we strongly think it is sponsored by those paid to kill us in the state because it will rather worsen the security situation in the state than solve it,”it insisted.
The group said: “The entire executive and members of the Coalition of Plateau Peace Practitioners Advocate,COPPA,an NGO based in Jos,have noted with concerns recent heinous attacks launched by agents of darkness in the state, especially in Mangu Local Government Area which has caused ethno-religious tension in the state.
“We strongly condemn these barbaric, senseless and inhuman attacks that led to the death of several persons including women and children in Mangu Local Government Area by some suspected criminal herdsmen.
“We call for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the suspects by security agencies.”
It noted that Mangu had maintained the status of one of the most peaceful local government areas on the Plateau and even Nigeria until recently when politics, criminality, and sentiments set in and disrupted the peace.
“This is one of the most accommodative local government areas in Nigeria where you can hardly differentiate the difference between a Muslim and Christian, strangers and indigenes because of their mutual relationship and love for people. It is however,sad that this is happening now,it said.
“We hereby wish to specially appreciate and pass a vote of total confidence on the Commander of Operation Safe Haven,the GOC 3rd Armoured Division Jos, Maj. General AB Ibrahim and his men for their selfless, and professional sacrificees during the Mangu and other attacks in the state which have helped greatly in repelling most of the attacks which would have put the state in a more terrible humanitarian crisis than it’s currently,”the group said.
According to COPPA,”From our findings, since assumption of duty of the Commander on the Plateau, he has been leading his men in the battlefield, and not from office like others who sit in office to give directives.
“We have had incidences where the commander himself led troops to the attack areas in our communities to repel the invaders.
“This act of the commander and his men is highly commendable and we must give kudos to him and his men. It will be unfair to always put blame on our security agencies who are always on the front line for us.”
It added:”One thing we must know clearly is that solution to the peace on the Plateau rest squarely on our hands and not the security agencies like we have always believed.”
“While not trying to hold brief for the operation, we must however call a spade a spade and commend them when they act right just like we criticize them when they do wrong or act in a way we regard as unprofessional,”it added.
The group insisted that,”The solution to the conflict rest squarely with our communities”, adding that “once we are able to speak the truth to the criminals among us, and surrender them to security agencies when necessary,we will have desired peace.”
“We should be able to differentiate between criminality, tribe and religion,because all tribes in the world have criminals.
“We must also be aware that the numbers of all the security agencies in Plateau State put together cannot even cover just one local government in term of providing security. Therefore, they can’t be positioned in each of our individual compounds to protect us, hence the need to proffer home-grown solutions to our problems.
The group picked holes on the statement blaming security agencies for the crisis by the state governor, Simon Lalong, asking the governor to rather accept blame given that his failure to effectively pilot the affairs of the state resulted to the ugly development and many more in the past.
“We feel very saddened that Governor Simon Bako Lalong, who is the Chief Security Officer of Plateau State resorted to blame security agencies for the problem he caused himself,having failed woefully to protect his people over the years as Governor,”it said.
” When was the last time Governor Lalong call a state-wide meeting of traditional rulers to review the security situation? When was the last time he call a meeting of the whole youths in the state to discuss security issue? When was the last time he met with heads of security agencies and peace stakeholders on the Plateau before this crisis? Is not alleged In some quarter that the governor got intelligence reports about two weeks about impending attacks before the Mangu attack? What did he do?” The group asked.
“We,therefore,consider the statement of Governor Lalong as a statement coming from a confused man who is only looking for those to blame. It is therefore,our final submission that Operation Safe Haven and all the security agencies in our dear state have done professionally and perfectly well in securing the state despite the lack of support from the state government,”it said.
The group further called for support from members of the public. It particularly appealed to them to assist by sending relief materials to affected communities in Mangu Local Government.
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