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Governor Lalong of Plateau State
By Raymond Gukas,Jos
Tension was rife in Jos city, the capital of Plateau state as Church services were observed in their lowest ebb as a result of the killings of about 23 travelers the previous day.
Since yesterday (Saturday) people were being advised to avoid certain routes as it was evident that some faceless individuals have either started to intimidate or physically assault inhabitants to revenge the killings.
The deceased persons were reported to be on their way to Ikare in Ondo state and were killed along the route of the troubled Bassa LGA on Rukuba road in Jos.
Governor Simon Bako Lalong has since declared a 24-hour curfew in Jos North, Bassa and Jos South LGAs.
In a directive as contained in a press statement signed Simon Makut Macham the Governor said “from 2pm of today, Sunday 15th August 2021, a 24-hour curfew will come into effect in Jos North Local Government Area. This is necessitated by security reports which indicate rising threats to the safety of lives and properties within the Local Government”
Already, the Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, in a statement signed by Richard Olatunde; his Chief Press Secretary says “from report he received from his brother Governor in Plateau, the incident was a case of mistaken identity.
The victims, according to preliminary reports, took a route where crisis between Muslims and Northern Christians had ensued for some time, and that they may have been possibly, mistaken for aggressors. Accordingly, either of the two feuding groups in the area could be responsible in this regard”.
While appealing for calm, he assured that our people living in Plateau are not “targets of any religion or ethnic crisis. While assuring that justice will be served,i want to plead again that we do not take law into our hands. Let us remain calm”
However, the presidency in acknowledging that “it was widely known that Plateau State has been one of the states affected by herder-farmer clashes, which have, in a significant way, been curtailed following the intense peace-building efforts of the administration of Governor Simon Lalong.
“This is not an agriculturalist-on-pastoralist confrontation – but rather a direct, brazen and wickedly motivated attack on members of a community exercising their rights to travel freely and to follow the faith of their choosing.
“The Presidency offers condolences to the families of the victims and continues to liaise closely with the local authorities – including security, the police, and governmental agencies.
“These kinds of attacks on our country’s citizens are unacceptable, heinous, and stand in complete contradiction to the teachings of the great religions of our nation”, Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity) said in a release.
The travelers were said to have attended a pre Maulud program in Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi’s residence in Bauchi and were returning to Ondo in five coaster buses when they were stopped.
According to these survivors, their drivers wanted following through Miango to Vom, then to Riyom/Zonkwa when they met the unknown people who waylaid them and killed them.
