The Conference of Plateau Peace Builders Network has condemned in strong terms the renewed violent attacks on Mangu and Bokkos Local Government Areas of Plateau State, which left ten dead and many others with varying degrees of injuries.
Among those killed by suspected terrorists’ was a promising 200-level computer science student of Plateau State University.
In a statement jointly signed on Saturday by its National Coordinator, Dr Dung Bot and the National Secretary, Barr. Mrs Lucy Wuyep, Bokkos, Coordinator Chief Isaac Makut, and Mangu coordinator, Pst Monday Mwansat, respectively, the indigenous peace-building organisation, charged all relevant security and law enforcement agencies to ensure that the perpetrators of the dastardly act and their sponsors are not only apprehended but prosecuted according to the laws of the land.
The Network further passed an overwhelming vote of confidence in the leadership and troops of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH). This unique military task force oversees security in Plateau and its environs.
The statement further called on the Military High Command to ignore calls by those it referred to as “crisis merchants” for the redeployment of troops, saying the idea was to overrun the vulnerable communities once the self-serving demand was met.
The statement reads: “We, members of the Conference of Plateau Peace Builders Network, are compelled to issue this statement following the recent killings that happened in Mangu and Bokkos Local Government Areas of our beloved and peaceful state, Plateau.
“We condemn the tragic incidents in robust terms, more so that they occurred at a time the amiable Governor of the State, Caleb Mutfwang, the military, and other security agencies had done so much in the areas of security, peacebuilding as well as harmonious co-existence.
“Our independent investigations revealed that the cowardly attacks were carried out by suspected herders, whose agenda is expansionist in form and occupational in nature.
“We, therefore, urge our hardworking Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) and sister security agencies to deploy all the intelligence and operational tools needed to identify, isolate and bring the killers of our people to deserved justice.
“What these killings demonstrate is the fact that some elements and tendencies are determined to perpetuate the culture of violence on the Plateau, ostensibly to satisfy the evil agenda of some persons.
“It is on this basis that we urge our people to cooperate with the military and other security agencies by reporting suspicious activities, movements and persons for prompt action.
“We acknowledge that security in contemporary society has become a whole-of-society approach. Therefore, all hands must be on deck to defeat these enemies of the state, deploying all means to push our peaceful state to the precipice.
“We are not oblivious of calls by some evil-minded people, who do not mean well for our state, for the redeployment of troops of Operation Safe Haven, who have been working tooth and nail to deny terrorists, bandits, and militiamen freedom of action within the general area.
“Aware of the fact that the move is to grant the terrorists a fertile ground to execute their genocidal agenda, we urge the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, to see the campaign as sinister and counter-productive.
“If anything, we request that additional special forces be deployed within and around vulnerable communities and places to contain the excesses of these troublemakers, who seek to sustain the reign of terror on the Plateau.
“We pass an overwhelming and resounding vote of confidence in the leadership and troops of Operation Safe Haven, whose professionalism, dutifulness, and patriotic disposition to the execution of their mandate through adherence to the rule of engagement have continued to endear them to lovers of peace and security.
“We will not close without thanking our President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his choice of Service Chiefs, as the development has shown that purposeful leadership begets positive outcomes.
“The recent plea by a notorious bandit in Zamfara State, Kachalla Garba Aminu, for dialogue with the Nigerian government is a testament to the achievement of our dear President through the service chiefs in the security sector.”
Recall that in a viral video posted on X (formerly called Twitter) on Thursday, the self-acclaimed bandit kingpin urged the Zamfara State governor, Dauda Lawal Dare, the Military, and the Federal Government to halt the intensified airstrikes that have continued to decimate terrorists, and degrade their ranks.
“We see this as a great achievement of the federal government through the service chiefs, and we, on this note, appealed to Nigerians to cooperate with security agencies to rid the country of crimes for the betterment of all, ” the group appealed.
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