Krestnews reports that the Plateau State Government has reacted angrily, condemning in strong terms another unprovoked attack and the Killing of over 51 persons including women and children by suspected gunmen in Zike and Kimakpa communities in Kwall District of Bassa Local Government Area of the State.
The commissioner of information and communication Hon. Joyce Ramnap, is quoted to have on phone that the attack is one too many and these series of attacks pose an existential threat to the lives and livelihoods of the peace-loving people of the state.
“Just last week, over 60 people were killed in Bokkos Local Government Area of the State…
“It is sad that in less than two weeks after our people were killed in Bokkos local government, this sad incident is reoccurring in another community in Bassa local government.”,she said.
She described the attack as another attempt to puncture the peace that has gradually returned to the State.
She maintained that the attacks are provocative, but called on the peaceful people of the state particularly in the attacked community to remain calm and equally vigilant.
The Commissioner emphasised that the Mutfwang administration is determined to deal decisively with anybody or groups found culpable in attacking innocent persons in the state.
She advise against reprisals and urged security operatives to go after the perpetrators of this dastardly acts.
The National Secretary of the Irigwe Development Association, Danjuma Dickson Auta, confirmed this to our correspondent stating that the attacks occurred around 8:00 pm, resulting in 51 deaths and many injuries.
The President of the Irigwe Youth Movement, Amb. Ezekiel Peter Bini, who also serves as the Chairman of the Coalition of Plateau Youth Ethnic Nationalities also confirmed the incident kilings.
According to Bini, the attack occurred around midnight when armed assailants believed to be Fulani militia stormed the village in large numbers. “What we saw was tragic. An entire family of eight was massacred in one house. The situation is heartbreaking, and many houses have been reduced to rubble,” he said.
He added that despite previous peace pacts signed with Fulani communities, the agreements have failed to bring lasting peace. “We signed peace agreements, but they have proven worthless. The other side never kept their end of the deal,” Bini stated.
Also Speaking Member Representing Rukubu/ Irigwe Constituency Hon. Eli Bako Ankala visited the affected communities, describing the attack as cowardly, Ankala emphasized the need for proactive security measures, especially at border areas. “We have consistently called on the state and federal governments to establish security outposts in vulnerable communities, but our appeals have not been met with action,” he said.
The lawmaker warned of the dangers of pushing communities to a breaking point, saying, “If people begin to seek retribution due to government inaction, the situation may spiral out of control.”
National President of the Irigwe Women Wing Mrs. Mary Dikva lamented the toll the recurring violence has taken on the community’s women and children.
“We are tired. We have over 570 widows in this community because of these attacks. The government must act now.
The National body of Berom Youths Moulder-Association under the leadership of Barr Dalyop Solomon Mwantiri Condemns, in its entirety, the continuous massacre of Plateau residents and communities recently in Hurti of Bokkos and Irigwe Kimakpa and last night in Zike and Kakpa villages of Kwall District, Bassa LGAs by armed men suspected to be Fulani militants.
The BYM in a Press statement signed and issued said they are saddened by the systemic premeditated killings of unsuspecting residents of Bokkos and Bassa,
The BYM also calls for dislodgement of occupants of grabbed lands on the Plateau as such persons are undeniably responsible for the hiring of the bandits and other terrorist elements into Plateau and beyond.
“We equally call for a crackdown on the perpetrators of the ongoing genocides to be tracked, apprehended and subjected to the extant laws, laid down rules and regulations governing human live, for we believe in the leadership of the security agencies as well as Federal, State and at Local Government currently have in the country”.(www.krestnews.com).