Jos massacre: ethnic war looms

By Adebayo Obajemu

If there’s any place in the country where the fault lines are more pronounced, we don’t need to look any further than Plateau State, and Jos, the state capital encapsulates the dilemma of this fault line.

The uneasy quiet that had enveloped the coal city for a relatively longer period than usual was shattered two weeks ago by a renewed orgy of violence, killings and kidnappings that criss- crossed around ethnic and religious cleavages of a once beautiful and livable city. This time around, there is a gradual move towards the path of mini civil war that if not well managed may spiral to unravel the country.

The background to the latest tensions in this was the killing of 22 travelers returning from a religious event in Bauchi two Saturdays ago.

According to media reports, some persons suspected to be Irigwe youths had opened fire on a convoy of five buses conveying some Moslem faithful who were heading to Ikare, Ondo State, from an annual Zikr prayer in Bauchi, killing 22, while several others sustained injuries, with many still missing.

Many regional groups such as PANDEF, Ohaneze, Afenifere and the Middle Belt Forum among others, as well as notable Nigerians and religious associations have condemned the killing.

The Jama’Atu Nasril Islam, JNI, led by the Sultan of Sokoto, Mohammed Sa’ad Abubakar II, last week warned against ethno-religious conflict in the country, following the killing.

The Sultan spoke on a day Plateau State government imposed a 24-hour curfew on three local government areas of the state, including Bassa, Jos South and Jos North, as a result of the crisis.

The Plateau State chapter of Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, did not only condemn the killings but also asked the federal government to fish out the perpetrators and punish them.

On his own, the Sultan blamed politicians for Plateau killings

Reacting to the killings, the Sultan in a statement signed by JNI’s Secretary-General, Dr Khalid Abubakar Aliyu, blamed politicians for the incident which he noted could snowball into ethno-religious conflict, if not urgently nipped in the bud.

“We call on governments and the security agencies not to be deterred on the search for the Rukuba Road assassins and whosoever is found wanting should be dealt with accordingly. The Plateau State Government should also be more proactive in saving the lives and property of innocent Nigerians.

“Muslims, particularly those residing in Plateau, should be steadfast with supplications, as all hands must be on deck to make Plateau State a peaceful and tourist attraction it used to be, for the benefit of the state and all peace-loving Nigerians.

‘’We also like to draw the attention of Christian neighbours, especially in Plateau State and Northern Nigeria in particular, to be wary of the diabolical attempts by some frustrated politicians to ignite an all-out ethno-religious conflict in Northern Nigeria.

“Many states in Northern Nigeria, especially Nasarawa and Kaduna states, and by extension North-Western states, have suffered from the scourge of herders and farmers conflict. It is on records that Muslims in these states have never blocked highways or roads to attack Christians or other non-Muslims in their localities.

“Not quite long ago, Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic was attacked by armed bandits and some people lost their lives, including a student. Yet, the students of Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, Zaria, located just about 50 metres away from Kaduna-Zaria-Kano highway, never embarked on any violent outburst or targeted killings.

“Therefore, a stitch in time saves nine and nobody should live under any illusion of having a monopoly of violence.”

Speaking further, the Sultan said: “This tragedy cannot be swept under the carpet; we have a firm conviction that this unwarranted attack on these helpless Muslims was a well thought-out pogrom.

“It is also rather unfortunate that men in position of authority will call this brutal act as a mistaken identity, does this rather suggest the affirmation of ethnic or religious profiling which is seen as a norm? No life, we repeat, no life is worth taking save as stipulated.

“The Muslim community recalls with nostalgia the unfortunate assassination of Major-General Idris M. Alkali, by the Du community and how they subsequently dumped his vehicle in a pond and threw his dead body into a ditch. It is heart-rending that the perpetrators arrested have not been brought to justice.

“We would like to stress that so long as government and its agencies continue to treat serious security matters with levity, anarchy and disorder invariably becomes an exclusive preserve of those affected, no matter how long it will take.

‘’It should be noted that the late general meritoriously served the Nigerian Army for 35 years and was a fine gentleman. Nonetheless, the perpetrators are yet to be punished.

“What more do we expect for ordinary unarmed citizens numbering twenty-two (22) persons, murdered in cold blood, according to the PPRO, Plateau State Command, although the figures could be much more that twenty-two persons, as no one is talking about the severely injured.

“We nonetheless expect something definite and decisive. We however call on the Ikare Muslim community of Ondo State to be calm. The JNI is not oblivious of the fact that some years back, Muslims from Ningi in Bauchi State were waylaid and killed in Langtang, Plateau State.

“Again, Muslims from Gombe, Adamawa, Yobe and Borno States have been waylaid and killed around Riyom on several occasions. Muslims traveling from Chad Republic through Riyom were killed in 2008.

“Muslims, just like any traveler, have to pass through Plateau State to get around to their various destinations. Thus, the late General Alkali was gruesomely murdered simply because he was a Muslim traveler plying the road. In all these incidences nobody has been brought to justice.

“It is a well-known fact that when indigenous peoples of Plateau rustled Fulani cattle and killed herders and Fulanis take the laws into their hands they quickly shout hell and target Muslims generally.

“Clearly, there seems to be a well-calculated design aimed at undermining and sabotaging the gains made so far. Likewise, the recent Jos mayhem witnessed new trends adopted by the murderers in targeting only Muslims while venting their anger!

“The massacre of Muslims on an Eid day, on the Rukuba Eid ground and publicly cannibalizing the victims is still fresh in our memories; sometime in June, 2018, when they blocked high ways and killed several Muslims and vandalized their vehicles.

“We are saddened by the apparent, hypocritical and double standard of the local and international human rights groups as well as civil society organisations.

“Why is it that if Muslims are killed/massacred or maimed, the international organisations and human rights activists always keep mum and pretend as if no life has been lost? Is there difference of lives locally or internationally as regards the sacred nature of it?

“We have repeated it times without number that the sanctity of life in Islam is to the extent that if any life is lost unjustly by an act of any individual is tantamount to killing the whole humanity, likewise if life is saved or secured is tantamount to saving the whole of humanity, as the Glorious Qur’an enunciated.

Already, the Plateau State Government had imposed a dawn-to-dusk curfew on Bassa, Jos South and Jos North local government areas as a result of the killings.

This followed security report that some people are mobilising to attack .

The government in a statement released said: “Hours after announcing a dusk-to-dawn curfew in three local government areas of Jos North, Jos South and Bassa, Governor Simon Lalong has directed the imposition of a 24-hour curfew in Jos North to contain further security threats.

“In the directive, the governor said ‘from 2pm of today, Sunday, August 15, 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.

“The governor, therefore, urges citizens to abide by the curfew and remain indoors to allow security agencies maintain law and order and deal with those bent on causing chaos.”

Business Hallmark learnt that there have been isolated attacks along ethnic and religious line in different communities in Jos and its environment.

Only last week troops of Operation SAFE HAVEN (OPSH) rescued seven more victims of the recent attack on commuters in Jos.

Major Ishaku Takwa, the military Information Officer, said: “The victims have been taken to a safe place for medical attention and care. The troops are still on search operation to find the remaining missing victims.”

In condemning the killing and the spectre of civil war in Plateau State, the Governors Forum lashed out at rising intolerance and impunity. It says:

“The killing has all the colorations of several others like it where locals in particular parts of the country, have become inhospitable and unwelcoming to other Nigerians living in or passing through their domains.

“These dastardly actions of Nigeria’s once peaceful locals which have resulted in unwarranted and needless deaths diminish us all as a people and pulls our country down to the deepest recesses of the absence of civilization. They also cause all kinds of reprisal killings and injurious interactions that do nobody any good.

“The Forum views with extreme disgust the horrible and thoughtless loss of precious lives and declare unequivocally that it must stop forthwith.

“The Forum made a passionate plea on the need for aggrieved ethnic nationalities and their militia to avoid needless killings of this nature by always seeking law enforcement assistance and legal redress.

In its own reaction, the Plateau State Chapter, Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, expressed worries over the rising incidence of violence in the state.

A statement signed by the chairman, Rev. Fr. Polycarp Lubo, read: “CAN wishes to express deep pain over the recent attacks in Riyom, Jos North, Barkin Ladi and Irigwe Chiefdom in Bassa Local Government Areas leading to loss of lives and property.

“The leadership of the church on the Plateau totally condemns these attacks and pleads with the security agents to be professional in handling their responsibility to guarantee the security of lives and property.

“The Church equally condemns the attack on a convoy of commuters along Rukuba Road in Jos North Local Government Area which also led to loss of lives. Every human life is precious and the unlawful killing of any human being, regardless of their identity and affiliation, is unacceptable.

“The Christian Association of Nigeria, Plateau State Chapter mourns with the families of those who lost their lives and loved ones as well as those who have been displaced or suffered harm of any kind.

“We pray that these needless killings quickly come to a swift end. As a Church on the Plateau, we are committed to working towards justice and peaceful co-coexistence.

“We call on all arms and tiers of government to ensure that the criminals responsible for these dastardly acts of violence are brought to justice.

Reacting to the killing, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, decried the ambush and killing of commuters at Rukuba Road in Jos.

MACBAN, in a statement last week in Jos by its National Secretary, Baba Othman Ngelzarma, said the whereabouts of some of the commuters, are yet to be ascertained.

“The ambush which occurred around 10.00am , also left several commuters wounded, while 40 others remain unaccounted for. The travelers were in a convoy of four buses, when they were attacked.

“MACBAN condemns this senseless violence on travelers. We urge security agencies to fish out perpetrators of this dastardly act and bring them to justice,” he said.

This development has also stoked rising ethnic tensions in Akoko, Ondo State.

Youth under the aegis of Akoko Youth Forum, AYF, last week asked the Federal Government to produce and prosecute the killers of the 22 Ondo travelers at Rukuba, Jos, Plateau State.

President of AYF, Ife Ajibuwa, summed up the attack as an unprovoked, senseless and deadly massacre of Akoko people.

He said: “It is with a saddened heart that we condole with the families of the victims of the unfortunate incident. May God grant you all the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss”.

He accused the Federal Government of treating marauding killers with “kids’ gloves”, and warned that unless the killers were tamed, it would “now be fire for fire,” adding that “enough is enough.”

“We hereby issue a stern warning to the Federal Government to curtail the nefarious activities of the perpetrators/bandits/terrorists and disarm them, rather than giving them protective coverage while they continue to destroy lives,’’ Ajibuwa said.

He challenged the federal and state governments “to find those responsible for the attack, mistaken identity or not.’’

He stated further: “Deliberate killing of another person is illegal and should not be treated with levity. Genocide is among the gravest crimes against humanity.

“Plateau is home to millions of Nigerians from all walks of life and I call on all warring groups to lay down their arms, embrace dialogue and the mechanisms put in place by the state government towards peaceful resolution of all issues of conflict in the troubled parts of the state.”

In order to douse tensions and prevent the build up from snowballing into ethnic conflagration, president Muhammadu Buhari directed security agencies to fish out the killers of 22 travelers.

Already institutions in this area, including University of Jos has locked its gates, while students are reportedly leaving the campus for their homes.

Governor Samuel Ortom said he has dispatched vehicles to convey Benue students in Jos, this was also the position of Niger State governor.

To further douse tensions, the Ondo State Governor, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, asked the people of the state not to take laws into their hands over the reported killing of some Ondo State-bound passengers in the fresh violence that erupted last week in Jos, Plateau State capital.

Akeredolu gave the warning in a statement issued last week, noting that an unconfirmed number of deaths were reportedly recorded while some were severely injured in the said attack.

Buhari, in a release by his spokesman, Mallam Garba Shehu, declared 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.

He said: “However, to be clear, 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.

“With the evident preparedness of their attackers, it is clear this was a well-conceived and pre-arranged assault on a known target, location and religious persuasion of the travelers; not an opportunist ambush.

“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”.

The President stated: “Make no mistake about it: in line with my commitment to protect all Nigerians, I have ordered our security agencies to fish out the perpetrators of this gruesome massacre of innocent travelers and bring them to justice”.

The Presidency also praised the ongoing efforts by the governors of Plateau, Bauchi, and Ondo states; the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Sa’ad Abubakar III; and Sheikh Dahiru Bauchi as well as a number of notable Christian and Muslim leaders as they intensified efforts to calm down the situation.

The Irigwe youths had repeatedly maintained that they were conveying the remains of their members killed in the recent attacks for burial in Bassa that fateful morning.

They had set out in a convoy for the burial as announced when violence broke out along the way at Rukuba road.

As they were conveying the corpses, they met some vans conveying some Muslims they suspected to be Fulani along their way.

The Muslims claimed they were commuters from Bauchi, but the angry youths challenged them, insisting that the Rukuba road does not connect with Bauchi highway.

They suspected that the Fulani were planning to attack them at the burial ground.

The Irigwe youths allegedly attacked the commuters, injured some and killed others before the security agents could reach the spot. The violence had escalated before it was arrested by the soldiers.

Plateau has had history of violence and killing, some intercommunal , but essentially ethnic and religious, especially between the numerous indigenous ethnic farming communities and pastoral herders.

The state has over forty ethno-linguistic groups. Some of the indigenous tribes in the state are the Berom, Afizere, Amo, Anaguta, Aten, Bijim, Bogghom, Buji, Jipal, Mhiship, Irchip, Fier, Gashish, Goemai , Irigwe, Jarawa, Jukun, Kadung, Kofyar (comprising Doemak, Kwalla, and Mernyang, Montol [fr], Mushere, Mupun, Mwaghavul , Ngas, Piapung, Pyem, Ron-Kulere, Bache, Talet, Tarok, and Youm.

These ethnic groups are predominantly farmers and have similar cultural and traditional ways of life. People from other parts of country have come to settle in Plateau State; these include the Hausa, Tiv, Idoma, Igbo, Yoruba, Ibibio, Annang, Efik, Ijaw, and Bini.

Each ethnic group has its own distinct language, but as with the rest of the country, English is the official language in Plateau State; Hausa is also a common medium of communication and commerce as is the case in most parts of the North and Middle Belt of Nigeria.

There have been cases of attacks away from the state capital, most recently, one which drew international attention as the site of multiple attacks attributed to Fulani herdsmen.

These included a series of attacks carried out on Christian communities in Plateau State from June 2018 onward which were estimated to have taken the lives of at least 200 people and left many others homeless.