The United States Government has strongly condemned the attacks in Plateau State in which no fewer than 86 people were killed and several others injured.
Spokesperson for the US Department of State, Ms Heather Nauert, in a statement, yesterday, said the perpetrators of the attacks should be brought to justice.
She further said, “The United States condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the killing of civilians and destruction of property in Nigeria’s Middle Belt region over the weekend.
Similarly, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), yesterday, condemned the latest killing by suspected Fulani herdsmen in some communities in Plateau State.
It would be recalled that some suspected herdsmen killed over 86 persons during an attack on Razat, Ruku, Nyarr, Kura and Gana-Ropp villages of Gashish District in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, over the weekend.
The National Public Relations Officer of the association, Mr Bestman Okereafor made the condemnation in a statement in Enugu.
The association condoled with the affected families and urged the Federal Government to address the issue of killings in the country.
“With great sadness, the leadership of NANS joins the world and fellow Nigerians in condemning the gruesome murder in some states of the federation, especially the most recent killings in Plateau State by suspected herdsmen.
The association, however, noted with concern that such killing had continued despite of its repeated appeals to the problem.
“NANS is appealing to Mr President to stand by his promise of protecting human rights and fighting human rights abuses,” Okoroafaor said.
Reacting, the newly registered political party, Young Progressives Party (YPP), accused the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government of incompetence, over the continued logjam recorded in its budget preparations and over the incessant killings recorded across the country.
YPP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Egbeola Wale Martins, strongly condemned the latest killings in 11 villages in Plateau State, where over 86 innocent people were confirmed killed by rampaging herdsmen, who he said had become a more worrisome security threat than the once dreaded Boko Haram sect.
According to him, this incessant killing has now become a recurring event under the watchful eyes of an APC government that rode to power on the mantra of change anchored on security, economy and anti-corruption.
He said, “It is high time the APC led government declared a National mourning and emergency while also as a matter of national expediency re-jig the entire security apparatus as we cannot continue to do things the same way and expect a different result.
“We are in desperate times that require drastic measures to be urgently taken to completely halt the incessant killings that have now become a norm in a society where sanity should prevail.”
“We advise the APC-led government to automate our budget preparation process by developing software that can aid seamless analysis and preparation of a flawless budget that can be submitted at least five months earlier to the National Assembly for consideration.”
Egbeola also condemn the just concluded APC convention, which he alleged was characterized by violence even with the presence of over 5,000 policemen and two surveillance helicopters.
“This show of shame aired on national television shows among other things how not to conduct a peaceful convention and the outcome of this shambolic charade called convention is beginning to be a cause for worry, because how can a party which cannot organize a credible convention organize or support a transparent, peaceful and credible elections come 2019,” he argued.
Also reacting, women groups in Plateau condemned the massacre of people, especially women and innocent children, in the recent attacks on its communities and cautioned opinion leaders against making inciting comments.
In separate interviews with newsmen, yesterday, in Jos, the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) said the attacks were acts of inhumanity and criminality.
The FIDA Chairperson in Plateau, Mrs Mary Izam, said government should comply with the amended provisions of section 14(2b) of the 1999 Constitution of protecting lives and property of the citizenry.
The National Coordinator, Christian Women for Excellence and Empowerment in Nigeria (CWEENS), Prof. Funmilayo Para-Mallam, also condemned the killings.
Meanwhile, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent an open letter to all the Permanent Representatives of Member and Observer States of the UN Human Rights Council, Geneva, urging their delegation to initiative and actively support the urgent holding of a special session of the Human Rights Council to address the ongoing killings of Nigerians and residents by suspected herdsmen and/or unknown persons in Nigeria, most recently in Plateau State where over 80 people were brutally murdered.
The organization urged the Human Rights Council to adopt a resolution to “condemn in the strongest possible terms the ongoing killings and revenge attacks on innocent Nigerians and residents by suspected herdsmen and/or unknown persons as well as the ongoing impunity enjoyed by suspected perpetrators and groups that have suggested these atrocities may be retaliatory killings.”
In the letter dated June 26, 2018, and signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Timothy Adewale, the organization said, “The proposed measures are necessary because several calls by Nigerians asking the Nigerian authorities to end the killings and attacks have largely gone unheeded for far too long. The Human Rights Council cannot ignore persistent attacks and killings of Nigerians and residents. If the Human Rights Council does not assume its responsibility and give voice to the victims, it would exacerbate the impunity of perpetrators; continue to hide their victims; and deepen the invisibility of the killings and attacks to the comity of nations.”
The organisation also urged “The Human Rights Council to stand ready to take additional measures according to the evolution of the situation in Plateau, Benue and several other states across Nigeria, including recommending that the UN General Assembly, in view of gross and systematic nature of the killings and attacks, and the failure of the Nigerian authorities to end the killings, considers the application of the measures foreseen in paragraph 8 of General Assembly resolution 60/251 (which authorises the suspension of the rights of membership in the council of a member of the council that commits and/or allows gross and systematic killings, attacks and other grave violations of human rights).”
The organisation expressed “serious concern that to date, no credible investigations have been carried out to determine who exactly is responsible for the killings and attacks and put an end to the atrocities.”
“SERAP urges the Human Rights Council to at the proposed special session adopt a resolution that expresses its deep concern about the ongoing killings and attacks on innocent Nigerians and residents in several states of the Federation, most recently in Plateau and Benue states of the country.
“The Human Rights Council should demand that the Nigerian authorities end these killings and attacks as a matter of critical and urgent priority, including by immediately identifying suspected perpetrators and their supporters, sponsors, and by conducting thorough, impartial and independent investigations with a view to bringing those responsible to justice and providing victims with access to justice and effective remedies, including adequate compensation, satisfaction and guarantee of non-repetition.
“The Human Rights Council should request the High Commissioner for Human Rights to urgently appoint a group of independent experts to monitor, verify and report on the ongoing killings and attacks on innocent Nigerians and residents across many states of Nigeria, most recently in Plateau and Benue states, with relevant ex­pertise in mass atrocity prevention, as well as in combating retaliatory attacks, with a view to making recommendations on preventing atrocities, combating farmers and herdsmen crisis, and improving the safety and security of all citizens and residents, as well as achieving accountability for the killings and attacks.
In another development, security operatives attached to the Presidential Villa Gate, close to the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, yesterday stopped what was described as a solo protest by former Minister of Education, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili over the recent gruesome murder of over 86 people in Plateau State.
The former Minister was said to have been harassed and assaulted by the security operatives while attempting to march towards the Villa to demand accountability and end to the violent killings going on in the country.
Dressed in a symbolic red attire, Ezekwesili carried a banner with inscriptions such as Help!, #EndTheBloodFlow, #EndThe Killings, #WeWantJustice.
Ezekwesili who took to her twitter handle said, “I marched as far as I could to the villa to protest the ineffectual ways of Nigerian president on the terrorists/herdsmen killings.
The police, military and SSS trampled on my rights, seized my banner.” Recall that the Bring Back Our Girls group had in a statement last Monday said that the former minister would embark on the solo march on Tuesday at 11.30 am.
The group in its statement stated that the march was fully endorsed and supported by the BBOG as the issue was part of the things it had been advocating about for the past four years. However, the protest was stopped at the Presidential villa gate when the security operatives stationed around the gate manhandled her while struggling to retrieve the placards with different inscriptions from her.
It was gathered that Dr. Ezekwesili vehemently resisted any form of harassment which later turned to commotion as the Police allegedly dragged her. It was further gathered that journalists with the former minister covering the fracas were not spared, as their phones and cameras were allegedly seized by the security operatives. Speaking during the protest, Ezekwesili said: “I am addressing my message to you as the President and Commander-in-Chief of Nigeria.
I am addressing my demands to you as that one individual bestowed with the powers of centralised command and control of our security institutions and personnel to enforce the provisions of Section 14 subsection 2b of the Nigerian Constitution (As amended) which states that ‘the welfare and security of the citizens shall be the primary purpose of the government,.”
Six of the 12 demands she highlighted in her message to the President were: “Putting an end to the endless killings by herdsmen going on in the country”.
“Revealing the identity of the perpetrators of these wanton killings in Benue, Taraba, Kaduna, Zamfara, Plateau, Nasarawa and Kogi states etc”. Justice for the victims of violent killings across the country and secure the living in all parts of the country”.
“Ending the ineffectiveness of the security establishment”. “Ending your loyalty to the Service Chiefs. Stopping the blame game and confusing statements on the killings of the citizens.”
Also, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday, criticised President Muhammadu Buhari, over his afterthought visit to Plateau State over the killing of scores of people in the state, describing the visit as belated.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, who stated this in Akure, Ondo State capital, said President Buhari has failed in its constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property.
Ologbondiyan noted that the President was more interested in his re-election bid than to provide adequate security to the people who voted him into power.
He said “for us in the PDP, we believed that President Buhari is more interested in 2019 Presidential election than governance. He does not care about what happened between now and 2019.
He goes after votes and his passionate drive is how to secure electoral victory in his ill-fated desire to returned in 2019.
Otherwise, there is a huge lost of lives in the Plateau state and we felt that it goes beyond the issue of sending Vice President to go and check.
We think that responsibly, the first place that Mr President should go to is the Plateau state, not going to commission a state project in Cross River.
We cannot say that because Cross River is a PDP state and encourage Mr President to do what is not just because we want the President to do what is sensitive to the feelings of ordinary Nigerians.
His action of going to Cross river at the expense of going to Pleasure, where a huge number of Nigerians has been killed is, to say the least, is irresponsible.
Ologbondiyan stated that the APC government and President Buhari had failed to add value to the lives of the common man in the last three years but noted that the President has been moving around commissioning white elephant projects.
He said “as a matter of fact, what singular project has Mr President commissioned on behalf of Federal Government in last 2 years? The President always move about to commission projects like bus stop or boreholes in another state, whereas the basic responsibilities of being in governance are the protection of lives and property.
“We are witnessing a situation where country and our nation is almost returned to a burial parlour.
We believed that that should be a concern to Mr President not chasing after state projects for commissioning all in the game of seeking reelection in 2019.”
Speaking on the APC position on restructuring, Ologbondiyan said it was difficult for the party and its leaders to embrace restructuring because APC is a movement.
He said “ they lied to Nigerians and because our political system is metamorphosing, Nigerian didn’t believe that group of a political elite can come together, just to lied to them and seized political power.
“ can you tell me apart from restructuring, the singular promised that APC had made and had lived up to it ? not one, so denying restructuring wouldn’t be a surprise to us in the PDP because we knew from the onset that the party did not mean well for Nigerians.
“It is not new to us in our party that APC is now claiming that restructuring is parochial or restructuring has the different meaning to different people.”