Reactions has continued to trial the massacre of over 96 persons by gunmen that attacked 15 communities in Bokkos and Barkin-Ladi Local Government Areas of Plateau State on Christmas eve.
According to The Police Public Relations Officer for the Plateau Command, DSP Alfred Alabo,
the gunmen also destroyed 221 houses, eight vehicles and 27 motorcycles.
Following the devastating incident that happened on Sunday, December 24, 2023 at about 10 pm, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been asked to immediately overhauls the security institutions because the present heads of those institutions of national security are not committed to safeguard lives and property of the citizens of the Country.
Reacting to the incident, Human rights writers association of nigeria (HURIWA), described development as an intolerable crime and manifestations of incompetence on the part is the security chiefs.
Consequence to the above, the right ground called on
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to arrest the killers and take them to face stiff and swift justice or the President should get ready to be dragged to the International criminal court in the Hague Netherlands for permitting heinous crimes against humanity under his government. ”
HURIWA recalled that France news agency has reported that armed groups have killed at least 160 people in central Nigeria in a series of attacks on villages, local government officials said on Monday. The group then wonder how on earth the President and the service chiefs are busy feasting in their different homes under the guise of celebrating the Christmas holiday whereas citizens are exposed to the dangerous attacks by armed terrorists.
The group informed that the toll marked a sharp rise from the initial figure reported by the army Sunday evening of just 16 dead in a region plagued for several years by religious and ethnic tensions.
“What is the primary duty of government constitutionally? The primary legal obligations of government in accordance with the Grund Norm of Nigeria is the preservation of the sanctity of lives of Nigerians, prevent killings of citizens and the destructions of their property and assets by armed non state actors. Why then is the president Tinubu unwilling to dismiss his non-performing security service chiefs and the DG of DSS who has overstayed his retirement time?
“it is now as clear and as constant as the northern stars that the current crop of service chiefs, Defence and police ministers and the inspector General of police are absolutely and grossly incompetent and indeed lack the capacity, the will power, the patriotic zeal and the professional candour to combat and defeat the expanding frontiers of terror attacks.
“it is the most shameful show of incompetence on the part of the Commander-in-Chief and his bunch of appointees holding command and ministerial positions linked to the protection of mational security, to stand by even as many as 113 persons have been confirmed killed says HURIWA even as the Saturday hostilities persisted to early hours of Monday as disclosed by Monday Kassah, head of the local government in Bokkos, Plateau State, told AFP.
“Military gangs, locally called “bandits”, launched “well-coordinated” attacks in “not fewer than 20 different communities” and torched houses, Kassah said.
Regrettably, HURIWA blame the incompetent service chiefs and the IGP for making it seamless for daredevil terrorists to spread their killing sprees across many states in Nigeria, the cases in Taraba and Benue states are becoming increasingly worrisome to the extent that terrorists from Cameroon enter Nigeria and kill in the two states unchallenged.
The Rights group described the continuous killings by the so-called unknown gunmen in the South East, and the persistent pogroms in Benue, Taraba and Plateau carefully choreographed by Fulani irredentists and terrorists, as unforgivable crimes against humanity.
“HURIWA which stated that killings are also the manifestations of the lack of any kind of coordinated approach by the armed forces of Nigeria, the police and the Department of State Services to viciously confront the terrorists unleashing mass killings all across Nigeria,
“HURIWA is calling on the President who is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Nigeria to take responsibility for these massive scale of failures by the armed forces and then take concrete steps to rejig the architectural formation of Nigeria’s security services by picking new sets of competent heads to coordinate the attacks against terrorists.”
Meanwhile, DSP Alabo said that findings from the assessment of the incident in Bokkos revealed that the 12 villages were attacked during which more than 79 persons killed and 221 houses set ablaze.
In his words; “Communities attacked in Bokkos Local Government Area include, Ndun, Ngyong, Murfet, Makundary, Tamiso, Chiang, Tahore, Gawarba, Dares, Meyenga, Darwat and Butura Kampani”.
In Barkin-Ladi Local Government Area, communities attacked are NTV, Hurum and Darawat.
The Police spokesman further said that 27 motorcycles and eight vehicles were equally burnt down while three other communities were attacked in Barkin-Ladi in which 17 persons were killed.
The police said that investigation and monitoring were ongoing, adding that further development would be communicated to the public in due course.
