From Adetutu Folasade-Koyi, Abuja
A former presidential candidate and chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Mr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has condemned the Christmas Day killings in some local government areas of Plateau State.
In a statement released by his Media Office in Abuja, yesterday, Olawepo-Hashim lamented the recurring orgy of armed conflict and called for rapid security reforms that would permanently arrest bloodletting at the local levels.
Said Olawepo-Hashim: “The cowardly killing of peaceful villagers in Barkin-Ladi and Bokos, some in their sleep on Christmas day shows there is no limit to the barbarism of some people who live amongst us. Same Christmas day, a medical doctor helping to provide community health services was kidnapped and killed in Oloru area in Moro local Government of Kwara state.
“How many lives need to be lost before rapid security reform measure that would permanently arrest the unending orgy of bloodletting at the local levels come into effect?”
To break break the cycle of killings, Olawepo-Hashim urged government, at all levels, to address the root causes of the violence, which is being watered by an unhealthy tendency of inter-communal conflicts, disputes over land and resources and deep-seated ethnic tensions.
He equally maintained that perpetrators of these heinous crimes must be identified, apprehended, prosecuted swiftly and transparently, regardless of their affiliations or backgrounds. This according to him, will send a strong message that justice is sacrosanct and impunity will not be tolerated.
As Nigerians looked forward to the joy and happiness of Christmas, on Sunday, December 24, armed men crept into different communities in two local governments of Plateau State and slaughtered over 100 people; with casualties still unaccounted for.
Even though the military said they responded to 36 distress calls from different locations in the last 48 hours, their efforts did not stop the killers from their bloodthirsty quest. A provisional toll by the local Red Cross reported 104 deaths in 18 villages in Bokkos alone.
The situation has defied several measures by past administrations to halt the trend. Many have blamed the crisis on many factors including disagreement over indigeneship, Jos ownership, politics, ignorance, religion, unemployment and sheer wickedness.