Amnesty International and former presidential candidates Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar have reacted to recent killings of residents of Plateau, North-Central Nigeria.
TheCable reported that some gunmen reportedly maimed on 2 April no fewer than 10 residents of five communities in Bokkos Local Government Area of the state.
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The attackers were said to have invaded Mangor Tamiso, Daffo, Manguna, Hurti and Tadai communities when they struck, leaving a number of houses destroyed.
The attack is coming a week after gunmen attacked another community in the same area.
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Reactions, condemnation
Reaction to the attack, Amnesty International, a global human rights watchdog, expressed concerns about how “more deadly attacks have brought the death toll in Bokkos LGA of Plateau State to over 40 persons, with hundreds displaced, amidst fears of more attacks.”
“People of Ruwi, Mangor, Daffo, Manguna, Hurti, and Tadai have been repeatedly attacked and have been living in fear, always bracing themselves up for the next attack. Apart from killing people, the attackers also razed entire villages, deliberately destroying homes and farms,” the group said in a series of tweets on its X wall.
The human rights body said it documented an alarming escalation in attacks in Plateau state, where 1,336 people were killed between December 2023 and February 2024.
It said its findings revealed that many affected villages were in Mangu, Bokkos and Barkin-Ladi Local Government Areas.
“Apart from the reported security forces’ failure to heed warnings or respond in time to save lives, the fact that no perpetrators have been brought to justice leaves rural communities of #Plateau state feeling completely helpless and at the mercy of ruthless gunmen,” the statement added.
In a similar vein, Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential flag-bearer in the 2023 general elections, described the recent killings as “an unending gory story in our land.”
In his post on the incident via his X handle, the politician worried that Nigerians are “normalising mass killings and mass burials as a way of life in our nation”, with communities now living in fear and no longer have a livelihood either in their farms or in their markets, without being killed, kidnapped, and maimed.
“How long will these killings, kidnapping, maiming and criminality continue in our nation that is not at war?How long must we wait to act decisively and focus on this drastic situation that is crippling our nation? How many more must die before the government acts for the people?” Mr Obi wondered.
He said that a number of communities like Bokkos in Plateau, Jato-Aka in Benue, Eha-Amufu in Enugu, Ufuma in Anambra, and Aba Oyinbo in Ondo deserve government protection.
He called for an end to the incessant killings, describing them as “terror and extremely unacceptable.”
He said no Nigerian should live in fear as authorities must do what it takes to protect the citizens.
“The government and security agencies must ensure that these killings are stopped, concrete steps are made to prevent future occurrences, and those arrested face the justice they deserve,” he said.
Also condemning the attack, Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President of Nigeria and the 2023 Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, blamed the issue on the weak security system under President Bola Tinubu.
According to him, the failure of Mr Tinubu’s security architecture has now become an endemic nationwide phenomenon with repeated killings, more of which do not even make the headlines.
“I wish to restate my counsel to the Tinubu-led FG to reconfigure its security architecture to meet the needs of protecting the lives and properties of our people,” he wrote in a statement signed by him.
Not the first time
Armed men killed scores when they invaded several communities in Bokkos and Barkin-Ladi Local Government Areas of Plateau State on 2023 Christmas Eve.
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About a week later the Nigerian Senate summoned the-then Chief of Army Staff, Taoreed Lagbaja, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and the Director-General of State Security Services (SSS), Yusuf Bichi, over the killings.
The summons was sequel to a motion sponsored by Diket Plang (APC, Plateau Central) at one of the plenaries of the country’s legislative chamber.
Despite the claims by the Nigerian Army that its operatives had identified all the challenges in the lead-up to the killings in the state and its promise to take necessary measures to tackle the issue, the killings continue amidst growing concern of fears and tensions in the region.
