Plateau Killings: Middle Belt Youths urges for Investigation
By Eloyi Matthew
The youth wing of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) has urged security agencies to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the Rukuba road attack that led to the killings of travellers on Saturday, 14 August 2021, in Plateau State.
The forum noted that the investigation is necessary to determine whether one of the vehicles in the convoy of those attacked was carrying a large cache of arms.
In a statement issued and made available to newsmen in Kaduna on Monday by the MBF youth wing National leader, Nasiru Jagaba, the youths condemned in strong terms the attempt by the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) to label the Irigwe ethnic nationality as the perpetrators of the killings, saying that they (Irigwe) were deeply involved in the burial of their people killed by herdsmen.
“The Youth Wing of the Middle Belt Region calls on relevant security agencies to investigate thoroughly the circumstances surrounding this attack to determine whether one of the vehicles in the convoy was carrying a large cache of arms. We condemn the attempt by the CNG to label the Irigwe ethnic nationality as the perpetrators of these killings as they were deeply involved in the burial of their people killed by heartless herdsmen.
According to them, the Irigwe people have rightly distanced themselves from the reprehensible and devious act and challenged the police to prove their culpability. It is now the responsibility of the police to prove the culpability of the Irigwe people.
The group noted that while they condemned the attacks and offer their heartfelt sympathies to victims and relations of the dead, they are appalled by CNG’s “malevolent attempt” at painting the unfortunate incident in religious and ethnic colouration.
It explained that Middle Belt youths are surprised that despite what it described as “the intermittent coldblooded murders” on the Plateau and other parts of the North, the group only found its voice when some elements attacked travellers.
According to the statement, “It is on record that not only Plateau State but the entire North has been turned into a river of bloodshed, with hundreds of communities decimated and thousands of innocent citizens killed without a whimper from the group.”
The youths noted that despite outcries from communities and patriotic Nigerians calling on the Federal Government to halt further genocidal attacks on their communities, their people living in the Middle Belt Region have been abandoned by the government and left to the mercy of their attackers.
They called on President Muhammadu Buhari to stop applying different standards in resolving the security challenges confronting the country, saying that the blood that flows in the veins of both Irigwe and Fulani people is still red in colour and represents common humanity.
The Middle Belt Youth Wing called on security agencies to put members of the CNG under serious security watch, explaining that their press conference has the potential of undermining and threatening the peace of not only the North but Nigeria at large.
The statement also called on the attention of the government on the continued killings of university students in Jos, urging the government to do everything to halt further unwarranted attacks on innocent citizens.