The Special Military Task Force, Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) has cautioned residents of Plateau State, North-central against taking laws into hands under the guise of self defence in response to the increasing attacks in the state, HumAngle reports.
According to the newspaper, Ishaku Takwa, the media officer of OPSH in a statement issued in Jos, the state capital, warned that the security situation in the state would only escalate if residents heed the consistent call to defend themselves against those attacking them.
Plateau State House of Assembly had on Friday, Aug. 27 called on the residents to stand up and defend themselves against killers in the state.
But in the statement issued on Monday, Takwa faulted the call by the state House of Assembly. “We have noted several reports in the media by some highly placed individuals calling on law-abiding citizens of Plateau to resort to defending themselves in the face of the security challenge experienced in the state,” he said.
He urged law abiding citizens of the state not to take laws into their hands but continue to provide the military with credible and timely information to enable the military to protect communities from attacks.
“We have improved on our responses to distress calls and several attacks were prevented from happening lately,” Takwa said, adding that, “these successes were possible due to the trust and provision of timely and credible information from the good people of the state.”
Crisis erupted in Plateau after the killing of 26 travellers on Rukuba road in Jos North Local Government area of the state while returning from Bauchi where they had gone to attend a religious function.
There have been reprisal attacks in the state despite the imposition of a dusk to dawn curfew by the state government.
I want you to note that, Plateau people have been under attack long before the Rukuba road incident. Many innocent citizens killed and houses torched. Over 100 Plateau indigens were killed in their homes and their houses raised down. yet you continue to link the systematic genocide of Plateau indigenous people as reprisals for the about 20 travellers in Rukuba road incident? Plateau has lost over 5000 lives of it’s locals to senseless and barbaric attacks, yet reporters did not see that but continuously link the recent attacks to the Rukuba incident as reprisals. It is quite unfortunate.
I dont blame you for saying that it was the incident that happened in Rukuba Road that brought about the continues reprisal of attacks, mr chairman, u did not consider the indigens that were killed at Irigwe community, more than 50 houses burnt and many hectares of farm lands destroyed at the closeness of military checkpoint and 15 minutes drive from the barracks before that Rukuba Road case, all what we could here was that no command from above, in essence, every body should die because there was no order given to defend the peopl of Irigwe community, if for instance those Taliban’s where shooting at the soldiers, will the wait for order from above? Pls check and restructure your security system before asking us not to defend ourselves when there is an attack on us.