Jos killings: Plateau Assembly gives Gov two weeks to take action

The Plateau State House of Assembly has given Governor Simon Lalong two weeks to take decisive action on the incessant attacks and killings in communities in the state. This is even as it has expressed worries that the Presidency that spoke on the same day Muslim commuters were recently attacked in Jos has now lost its voice days after a Christian community of Yelwa Zangam was attacked and over 35 persons massacred in their homes. The Assembly said it had expected the Presidency to condemn the recent killings with the same urgency and zeal it did when the Muslim travellers were attacked. Addressing a world press conference in Jos, the Assembly also called on the people of Plateau to rise up and defend themselves and their communities, as the conventional security design seems to have shown ineptitude to do so, and can no longer guarantee the safety of the people. The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Hon. Peter Dasun, who spoke on behalf of the Assembly, condemned the killings as unacceptable. He also commended the youths for publicly displaying the corpses of the victims at the House of Assembly to send a strong message to government that it is not doing enough to protect the citizens. He said: “We commend the youths on the Plateau for sustained coordinated and organized campaigns against the killings as well as the courage to make it go viral by sending strong messages to the world using the dead bodies of the mayhem on the social media and the streets of Jos; the display of the corpses in the House of Assembly is a sign that they recognized the authority of the House as an institution that can speak for the people. We greatly appreciate that action. “As an Assembly with the people at heart, we call on Plateau State citizens to have confidence in us with renewed commitment as we have given two weeks to the governor to take action on the resolutions the House has forwarded on security matters and how to restore peace. “We strongly call on Plateau people to practically stand up and defend themselves and their communities, as the conventional security design is no longer guaranteeing our safety as a people. “We call on the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong, to come up with a statement defending us as a people and to bring back renewed commitment to the cause of Plateau. “We are still expecting with high hopes, the president to also come up with a statement about the killings in Yelwa Zangam just as he did in the killings of travellers along Rukuba road and to also indicate a sign of justice, or we will see him as being reflexive about the conflict in Plateau.” The lawmakers said they were committed to the yearnings and aspirations of Plateau people, adding that:  “We deeply appreciate the calls made by Plateau people, both at home and in the diaspora, for encouragement, and tasking us to do the needful in order to save Plateau and its heritage. “We also wish to put on record that we stand with Plateau people in this trying moment and assure them of our genuine commitment to the course of Plateau State.” Calling on traditional rulers to look inward and release local security design to protect Plateau people as well as reinforce the vigilante, hunters and local wise men to defend our people, the lawmakers said the Assembly has “directed all local government chairmen to suspend their planned recruitment of ad hoc teachers and instead recruit 200 vigilante personnel in each local government area to boost and augment local intelligence gathering”. “Security operatives are called upon to fish out the perpetrators of the mayhem and be punished according to the law,” he said. (THISDAY)