Bloody Christmas On The Plateau! – By Ayo Oyoze Baje
“Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths”
-Isaiah Chapter 59 verse 7 (The Holy Bible)
“Barbaric, brutal and unjustified” were the words of outrage that escaped the livid lips of the governor of Plateau state, Caleb Mutfwang in response to the mindless mayhem unleashed on the innocent residents of Bokkos and Barkin-Ladi local government councils of the embattled state by yet- to-be-identified gunmen.
The horrifying blood-letting , which took place on December 25,2023 when the Christian faithful were supposed to be celebrating the birthday anniversary of the Lord and saviour Jesus Christ sent some 160 souls to their early graves. And many houses were razed to rubbles!
As usual,there were some conflicting figures of casualty. While Dickson Chollom, a state lawmaker stated that there were at least 50 people confirmed killed in several villages in Barkin-Ladi area, the Red Cross reported that 104 people died due to the onslaught in 18 villages in the Bokkos region. But the head of the same LGA confirmed 113 deaths. Whatever the true figures might be, who says that one innocent soul should be mercilessly murdered in cold blood in a country that the constitution has clearly stated that the primary purpose of government is to protect human life and provide for the welfare. That is according to Section 14 Sub-Section (2) (b ) of the 1999 constitution (as amended).
Unfortunately, these largely preventable deaths keep taking place serially-from one year to another-as if we do not have political leaders that care for the sanctity of human life and its protection. Perhaps, that could be because they and their relatives do not fall as the voiceless victims to the deadly attacks.
Similarly, one cannot but wonder too what the role of the police and military operatives are, with regards to the embattled Plateau state. As alleged by many concerned Nigerians, some untouchables may be benefitting from the ceaseless carnage. If not, how do we explain the spate of the killing spree over the years?
Please, kindly take note that yours truly has for over a decade been consistently raising alarm about the ethno-religious tension between the natives and the fully armed Fulani herdsmen in Plateau state, which has led to the horrendous wasting of irreplaceable human life.
For instance, on March 7, 2010 some 500 Berom natives were hideously hatched to death in Dogon Nalion, part of which informed my opinion essay entitled: ‘Taming the Beast on the Plateau ‘as published on March 24, 2010. And because the killings of the natives of the state continued another article of mine:’ Bloodbath on the Plateau’ was published on December 29, 2010.
Further to this, the heart-rending media report on August 29, 2011 was predicated on the violence sparked off at the Agwan Rukubba road, Jos that led to the gruesome murder of 20 people.So terrifying an incident it was that the Muslim faithful were compelled to celebrate Ed el Fitri indoors! Yet, on August 31, that same year the report was that of: ‘Five more people killed in Jos'( Daily Independent) But there was more tragedy to come.
And it indeed took place on September 5, 2011. That was when some Fulani herdsmen went on rampage, wiping out a family of eight! It was reported by Daily Sun newspaper. And on September 9, 2011 it was that of: ‘Another family of eight wiped out in Jos’ (PM News). The gory killing involved Chollom Gyang who was hacked to death along with his wife, Hannatu, their six children, including a four-month baby and a visitor. The tear-jerking horror took place in Barkin-Ladi local government area of the state.
The then Chairman of the LGA, Emmanuel Dachollum fingered members of the Special Task Force (STF) as culpable in the recurring killings of his people. As he stated:”We have made appeals to the federal government that people in Mahanhar area have lots of sophisticated weapons but the government has refused to do anything about it “. Incidentally, when a search was conducted some weapons were seized, as Dachollum had indicated but the STF lacked the political will to go the whole hog across the local government councils.
In fact, the villagers were so disenchanted with the questionable operations of the STF that they called on the federal government to withdraw it. But why , you may ask? The answer has to do with the way and manner the marauders were being treated with kid gloves, instead of frontally tackling them and bringing the culprits to speedy justice. Based on this lukewarm attitude to fighting injustice others with similar evil intentions were emboldened to do worse.
Fast forward to the recent years and as at April,2022 it became patently obvious that the blood-sucking vampires in human skin were battle- ready to wreak more havoc. In that month, 10 people were killed in Te’egbe village of Bassa LGA. Over 70 others had their unprotected lives wantonly wasted in Kanam community. And much more brazen attack took place, when some Fulani herdsmen l, in a bold bid to take over the land from the natives attacked Kukawa, Gyanbawu, Dungur, Kyaram and Yehwa. Not left out were other communities such as Dadda,Wanka,Shuwaka,Gwammadaji and Dadin Kowa.And at the end of their sweeping raid 142 lives of fellow Nigerians were lost to the whirlwind of the orgy of violence.
Unable to hide his angst at the spate of the killing of his people, Gbomgbom Jos,Gyang Buba had to remind the land grabbers and their sponsors that going by history and as widely gazetted the Beroms are the natives and not the Fulani herdsmen. He highlighted the unimpeachable fact that the act of benevolence on the part of the Beroms, who offered land to the herders to feed their cows was being repaid with ingratitude by the beneficiaries. That is not good enough.
Neither is it life-saving on the part of the then government in power when the state governor, Simon Lalong pledged that far-reaching measures had been put in place to guarantee internal security and enhance the capacity of of the security operatives.But the recurring killings point in a different direction, all because he could not walk the talk.
Of great significance therefore, beyond Mister President Ahmed Tinubu similarly promising to investigate what has really transpired during the bloody attacks on innocent citizens on Christmas day, much more has to be done than said.
For instance, a root-cause analytical approach has become a necessity to unravel the reasons behind the ethno-religious tension, fish out the masterminds and bring all of the perpetrators of evil to justice. It goes beyond mere rhetoric.
Also worthy of note, is the need to recruit more police officers, train and retrain them in information gathering using modern technology. In fact, the situation has made the call for state and community policing an imperative. If they hail from the neighborhood it would be easier for them to act on the available information. But the government should empower them with the much-needed funds and equipment to discharge their duties to the people and the country.
As Amnesty international has rightly noted: “The Nigerian authorities have been failing to end frequent, deadly attacks on rural communities of Plateau state”. To do the needful, our political leaders should glean some significant lessons from Mario Machungo’s paper titled:”Good Leadership Counts”. It was presented at the 1999 Kampala Conference for Security, Stability and Cooperation in Africa (CSSDCA). It has to do with the imperative of strengthen internal security in the continent, Nigeria inclusive.
