Bokkos Killings: Plateau Indigenous Youths Task All Communities To Be More Vigilant
From Tongnaan Bawa, Jos
A group known as the Coalition of Plateau State Indigenous Youths and Ethnic Nationalities has called on all Communities in the State to be more vigilant, protect and defend themselves against any more bandits attack.
The spoke persons of the Coalition Comrades Paul Dekete and Secretary Amb. Susan Bosco at the weekend in a Press Conference at the NUJ centre Jos, also resolved to revolt any attack on either of the Ethnic Groups or Nationalities in the State adding that such shall be responded to appropriately irrespective of locations.
“The Coalition called on all Plateau Communities/Nationalities to respectively develop self-defence mechanism to survive the ongoing hostility and genocidal mission declared by the Bandits and other terrorist elements ravaging the State, for it has become imperative to the device all protective means, either physical, spiritual or both in the defense of our heritage. It also called for synergy in Community border patrol within the State between ethnic groups.
It observed with “dismay that despite the presence of different (Joint) security agencies in the state, there is increasing massacre and waste of human lives and property, including innocent children, women, and the aged.
“It is in the light of the continued killings, and failure to protect lives and property in the State that has made the Coalition come to the inevitable conclusion that there is no synergy in the operations of the security outfits, or they are being sabotaged from within”, the coalition added.
They however commended the effort of Major Gen Abubakar E. Abdusalamm, head of OPSH and GOC 3 Div for his “accessibility, prompt response, lack of bias, and professionalism”.
“The coalition also observed that there is a deliberate attempt by the Bandits militias to prevent victims from returning to their ancestral land/homes by looting their properties and food items. The coalition is calling on the Government to take necessary action aimed at stopping the looting of properties of victims/displaced persons. So far statistics show that more than two hundred (200) locals were killed in Bokkos alone, with over three hundred injured( 300), over two hundred ninety houses burnt (1,290), eighty-one cars(81) burnt, nineteen thousand nine hundred and ninety-five (19,995) person displace, now taking refuge at the mini stadium in Bokkos, apart from those who had fled to relatives in another part of the State and Country. While displaced persons from various villages are taking refuge in Bokkos town, information at the coalition’s disposal indicates that some armed Bandits have been hosted at Maling (Angwan Hausawa). We are calling on security agents to search and disarm them, to avoid future attacks and killing of innocent citizens.
“Given the wanton destruction of lives and properties in Plateau state and across the North Central region of the Country.
“We are calling on the Federal Government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to establish the commission to care for the millions of people displaced and left as Internal Displace persons in their ancestral land, as done in the northern region of the Country. Establishing the commission will make the people have confidence in this administration and also fast-track speedy development and restoration of normalcy.
“Lastly, the Coalition is unreservedly calling on ALL Plateau residents not to relent in making available any early warning signal, for early response. It also calls on all concerned natives and other residents to be on red alert, and come out in mass whenever there is a clarion call for the needful otherwise, we would all go into extinction in the hands of immune terrorists.
