Amidst reports of attacks that led to the death of at least 10 persons this week in the face-off between the Irigwe natives and Fulani herdsmen in Miango in the Bassa Local Government Council of Plateau State , the State Governor and Chairman of the Northern Governos Forum, Barrister Simon Lalong, is preaching peace to other areas.
Meanwhile, an embittered member of the Forum,, Samuel Ortom of Benue State on Wednesday carpeted President Muhammadu Buhari, for aiding with Fulani herders against other ethnic nationalities.
Addressing a press conference in Makurdi on Wednesday, Ortom said:“Mr President, in case you are listening to me, I want you to know that your people, Nigerians, you promised Nigerians that you will be fair to all,
“You said that you will be for everybody and for nobody, and now it will appear that you are for Fulani people because nothing is coming from you to give the people confidence that you are their President.
“You are the president of the federal republic of Nigeria, you are not the President of Fulani.
“You are the President of everybody and I owe you a duty as a stakeholder in this nation to let you know that what is going on is wrong and this has the potential of dividing this country which will not be in the interest of anyone –some of us believe in the unity of this country…
“That was why I called the Federal Government to licence me and many others to have guns, to have AK-47 too. Because if I have my AK-47 and a Fulani man is coming there, he knows that I have and he has, then we can fight each other.
“But you can’t disarm me and arm a Fulani man. This is not right, the federal government is biased, it is unfair. The failure in security is caused by the federal government.”
In Plateau, the President of Jon Jam Youth, Alh Adamu Saidu said, it is unfortunate that the outbreak of crises still lingers in Bassa where some of the youth went for grazing and are still missing while some of their corpses were recovered inside the bush, a media report said.
He said, enough is enough of the massacre of their herders in Irigwe land, adding, “we shall revenge the death of six youths”.
He said one of the youths is still missing inside the bush, according to Universalreportersng.com
The Irigwe are also claiming some of them were attacked and killed by alleged Fulani militia and bandits.
Also, according to an AIT report on the television station’s website, a fresh attack by suspected bandits in Dundu Village, Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State has left two people dead.
The attack which was said to have been carried out by bandits took place in the early hours of Wednesday, February 3, 2021.
It was gathered that one of the victims died on the spot during the attack, after he was shot by the gunmen in an ambush, while the second person who sustained injuries, died on the way to the hospital.
Those killed during the attack were 39-year-old Raphael Bawa, who has two wives and four children, as well as 40-year-old Mabo Agah, who died before reaching the hospital.
He had a wife and five children.
The spokesman of the Plateau State Police Command, ASP Gabriel Ubah, and the National President of the IRIGWE Development Association, Sunday Abdu, both confirmed the incident in Jos.
Sunday Abdu, who condemned the recent attacks in the state, called on the security agents to protect the people from further attacks.
But Lalong has expressed concern at reports that herdsmen belonging to a particular ethnic group are being targeted in some parts of the South East and South West leading to loss of lives and properties.
He recalls the recent intervention of the Nigerian Governors Forum led by its Chairman, Governor Kayode Fayemi who met with stakeholders in Akure, Ondo State to calm the tension and forge amicable resolution of the issues.
A statement by his spokesman, Dr. Makut Simon Macham reads further: “While such intervention was celebrated as a success to be sustained through further engagement between herdsmen and representatives of affected communities, emerging reports of attacks on herders and the gradual introduction of ethnic sentiments in the conflict is disturbing and should immediately be nipped in the bud before it gets out of hand.
“While the Northern Governors Forum concedes to the rights of Nigerians to reside wherever they so desire without any molestation or discrimination, it also emphasizes that criminal elements should not be used to tar any particular ethnic group for any crime as that will portend danger to peaceful coexistence and national unity.
“Rather, such criminal elements should be exposed, isolated and made to face the law of the land without prejudice to their ethnic backgrounds as the motives or criminal actions cannot be said to be the position of their ethnic group.
“In the face of the recent worrisome developments therefore, the Northern Governors Forum calls for calm and cautions Nigerians particularly those in the affected areas who might have been aggrieved or targeted to exercise restraint.
“Nigeria is going through a lot and escalating such tensions would definitely not resolve any grievances but rather aggravate the situation to levels that could threaten national security.
“Leaders across political, ethnic, religious and community lines should avoid utterances and actions that further fan the embers of distrust, hate, violence and retaliation which can easily escalate the situation and cause chaos.
“Relevant Government officials, traditional rulers and opinion moulders must also rise up and speak with one voice by not only condemning crime no matter who is involved, but also sending the right signals to those who want to take the laws into their hands and trample on the Nigerian Constitution by attempting to deny others the rights to live and pursue their legitimate business in whatever place they choose to reside.
“Security agencies must equally be firm and rise up to the occasion by protecting all law abiding citizens against threat to their lives and properties irrespective of their ethnic or other affiliations. They should also send clear and unambiguous message to those threatening the peace that they will act decisively to stop them from plunging the nation to anarchy.
“The Northern Governors Forum further assures Nigerians of all ethnic, religious and political persuasions of their constitutional rights to pursue their legitimate businesses wherever they choose within the region and appeal to the people to resist any attempt to lure them into any act that can threaten the peace and tranquility of the region and the nation at large.”
