NIGERIA: Reps plan summit to address Plateau killings

 

Disturbed by the recent slayings in Plateau State, the House of Representatives will hold a security summit. More than 30 people have been reported killed in renewed violence in the North-Central Plateau State.

The senseless killings and burning of houses have continued in Mangu town of Mangu Local Government area of Plateau State despite the 24-hour curfew imposed by the government.

Reacting to the violence, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, condemned the recurring attacks in the state in the strongest terms. Tajudeen, according to a Thursday statement by his media aide, Musa Abdullahi Krishi, hinted that the lower chamber would take a strong position upon its resumption from the Christmas and New Year break next Tuesday, January 30.

“I am deeply saddened by the continuous killings in Plateau State. It is unfortunate and disheartening that this is happening at this time when efforts are on to tackle insecurity around the country,” the speaker was quoted as saying. “I call on the people of Plateau State to live in peace with one another as they were known for years back. We cannot continue like this as a people. “Our Creator, in His wisdom, brought us together for a reason, and we must continue to appreciate our differences and form a common front to tackle our collective challenges instead of killing ourselves. This path will only take us backward.”

He also promised to meet with President Bola Tinubu on the matter just as he called for peace on both sides. According to him, people must live in harmony with one another for any meaningful progress to be made.

Meanwhile,The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has said it is unemotional by the allegations of its complicity in the ongoing extrajudicial killings in the Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State.

Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Mangu LGA, Reverend Timothy Daluk had accused the military operatives deployed to the area of partisanship and compromise in the insecurity situation ravaging its communities.

"I'm  in Mangu local government. I'm here to report the situation in Mangu Local government to the whole world to understand what is happening in Mongo at this particular point in time. The military are the ones sending our people away to allow the militia to burn their houses. At this particular point in time, they have sent every Christian away from a new market and thereby leaving, leaving the Muslim to, to, to to kill and burn their houses, they set the curfew, the curfew restricted to only people within, within Mongo, within the Christian domain, within the Muslim domain. They are free to move and do whatever they wanted to do. And not only that, the military

has killed three of our young men in which I know one is before my own, my own church. They kill one yesterday and I reported to the security. He said that it was a fake soldiers. At first he said I was lying until I proved to him beyond reasonable doubt. Then he lied. Finally he said, I said, no sound effects. He's a real soldier who killed him. So I said, no, he's a soldier. I killed him

Finally they may signal to the soldier he disappeared from the from the scene. This thing go on and on. Now I'm speaking to you. Every. All of them are switched off their phone and they allow the the place to be burned down and razed by the people. And this is what is going on. Even now that I'm speaking to you people, they have people around, around in general

junction down from this side to side, down over down there. Their houses are now at least because the soldier has protected them and they allow them to burn people's houses. They are not doing anything about it. So we we in Mongo local government are concerned. We don't want the military in Mongo local government. They should pack their load and go. We don't want them

we don't need them and we don't want them because the plan they have been bought, they have given, they have, they have been paid with the price to do carry out their duty, what they are doing. So the reason I'm saying, and I'm calling the whole world to understand that this thing should stop and people should come to our rescue to save us. If not, that is an evil plan for us to destroy Mongo local government, because the governor is from here and we are not going to

allow it. We are going to fight with less of them and instead they kill us all the military. They keep on killing us. We accept they should kill us, but we are not going to stop. We are. We are going to penetrate. We are, I will say, personally organize the whole Christian government. We are going to fight. We are not going to stop. And that is what I said this. If this does not stop, we are going to call

a meeting for pastors and we are going to make an arrangement for that because that is enough is enough. We have tried all to make a peaceful living. We have cried and may cry, but the government is not listen. If they are from where we are, they should take our cry too. That's my plea. Thank you."

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