14 Killed in a Gale of Attacks in Jos
Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State.
Fourteen persons were reportedly killed by yet-to-be-identified assailants in a fresh gale of violence that erupted in Jos, Plateau State, at the weekend.
This brings to at least 25 lives that have been lost in the city in the past few days, with the most recent of them being the killing of 11 persons on Sunday night in a simultaneous attack on Heipang and Korut villages of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of the state.
This also forced Governor Jonah Jang to cancel a one-week retreat at the Obudu Cattle Ranch planned for members of the State Executive Council.
But Chairman of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, Hon. Emmanuel Lomang, who confirmed the killing of the 11 in Heipang and Korut, has pointed accusing fingers at some members of the armed forces.
He said: “Four military identity cards and a military cap were found at the scene of the attack,” adding that the natives were alleging that the soldiers were responsible.
Lomang also said: “The attackers began to shoot at about 12:30am to scare the villagers, and later attacked a house at Heipang, where the assailants macheted and killed seven members of the family of one Mr. Nnaji.”
Another victim, Mrs. Margaret Deme, whose husband, Deme, was gruesomely shot in her presence, while recounting her ordeal said: “Those who killed my husband came in black attires and were escorted by soldiers.”
She said when they knocked on their door, her husband who was in the village for the weekend, opened the door and was subsequently shot and killed, leaving her with five children to cater for.
When the assailants left, she further said, they went to their next door neighbours, where they met two brothers, Samuel and Adamu Gwom, and killed them also. Their mother, Ngo Chang, who was in tears, said: “Some wore army uniforms while others were in black attires.”
But the spokesman of the military Special Task Force (STF) on Jos crisis, Captain Charles Ekeocha, who also confirmed the attack, however said: “On August 11, there was an attack on Heipang area of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area. A house belonging to Mr. Nnaji, an Ibo, was attacked and seven members of the family were killed.
“My troops went to the area to repel the attack. In the process, the vigilantes in the area opened fire on our troops. In retaliation, one of the vigilantes with AK47 riffle and 30 rounds of 7.62mm (special) was shot. He later died on the way to the hospital and his remains have been deposited in a mortuary at Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH).”
Ekeocha said the youths in the area staged a demonstration demanding the withdrawal of the troops from the area.
“In the process, the youths stoned our vehicles and ransacked the soldiers’ accommodations. To avoid more casualties, troops have been withdrawn to Mararaban-Jama’a area of Jos. However, the general area has been beefed up with troops of STF.”
The STF added that no arrests had been made.
Tension has again returned to the city as everyone has become mindful of where to go. Armoured tanks have been rolled out by the security operatives.
Meanwhile, Governor Jang has condemned the Sunday night’s attack on the “peaceful” communities of Heipang and Heipang in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of the state, “which left 11 people dead”, describing it as unprovoked.
In a press statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Communication, Yiljap Abraham, the governor has directed the commander of the STF, the state Commissioner of Police and the Coordinator of Operation Rainbow to take all operational steps to investigate and bring to justice “those who are bent on bringing grievous harm to the peaceful people of Plateau”.
The governor further said in the statement that: “Government has the will, capacity and unbreakable commitment to keep the hard-earned peace in the state and safeguard the security of the citizens. Nevertheless, communities are also advised against taking the laws into their hands in the face of such incidences, but are to work hand in hand with security forces.”
Reacting to the development, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Pam Ayuba, said government was making frantic efforts to unravel the brain behind the attacks, which he described as heart-rending.
He said Jang was “really pained” over the incident, as “a security meeting is on the way and the outcome would be made known”. He advised the people to give peace a chance.
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