The National Publicity Secretary of Berom Youth Moulders- Association, Rwang Tengwong, says he has seen five families wiped out in violent killings since the quest by alleged Fulani militias to expel natives from their ancestral lands and take over began around 2004.
In an interview with the Sunday Punch, he regretted that this has continued unhindered, with the Government doing nothing to stop the genocide or resettle the dispalced people.
This comes amid the allegation by United States Senator, Ted Cruz that the President Bola Tinubu Government is using Nigeria’s resources to pay lobbyists to wage a public relation war against critics instead of responding to genuine concerns of alleged Christian genocide in his country.
While responding to a question on how the recent attacks on Kum and Wereng communties, in which a family of nine including a two-month old baby were killed, happened, the Berom Youth spokesman, who is a resident of Kum, painfully recalled how he has seen five families wiped out in attacks by alleged Fulani invaders.
“The areas were attacked simultaneously on Saturday night, precisely around 11:30pm, and the attack lasted for an hour into the early hours of Sunday morning.” he said.
“The attackers came in large numbers, and that was after they attempted to attack another community and failed. Then they moved to the two other communities and came to a house on the outskirts of one of them, surrounded the house, and killed nine people.”
When asked about the motive behind the wiping out of an entire family, Mr Tengwong said, “There’s no motive or justification for any form of criminality. In most cases, we’ve never heard any reason why they come to attack. Rather, what we have witnessed over the years on the Plateau is that when they come, they kill, and people flee their communities. The next thing is that the people whom the government has always claimed to be behind these killings are described as unknown gunmen.”
He added. “We have over 130 communities in Plateau State where, after killings occur and locals flee, a new set of people comes to occupy the communities. These new occupants are Fulani. Whenever they occupy a community, it becomes a no-go area for the original inhabitants.
“So, there is no justification whatsoever. We’ve had incidents where cooked-up stories are told.
“They will tell you that the attacks happened because their cattle were rustled. In Nigeria, if we know the law and agree that there is a law governing us, then if something is stolen, the law requires it to be reported to the police.
“But what we witness are criminals invading communities and killing people. There have also been cases where some Fulani claim that their cattle were rustled. But at the end of the day, you’ll find out that it was a fellow Fulani who rustled the cattle.“
On if the police have been helpful in their plight, he responded, „It is quite unfortunate that no arrests have been made.
“So, it becomes difficult for us to understand, as people in Plateau State, whether the government is sincere in dealing with issues of insecurity or not.
“Most times, the funny thing about these bandits or gunmen is that they come on motorbikes, and one should ask how they were not stopped at security checkpoints on the outskirts. When you are entering Jos from Abuja, there is a security checkpoint you pass before getting there. It’s not up to 1,000 metres from where the attack took place.
“Right behind that community, I think less than 500 metres away, there is another security checkpoint. To the best of my knowledge, there was no response or arrest by the security operatives.”
According to Mr. Tengwong, “The attacks on the Plateau started even before Boko Haram emerged. Let me tell you: Boko Haram had a testing ground on the Plateau, and it was not mitigated. It later moved its operations to the North-East. When bomb attacks started occurring here and there on the Plateau, the Nigerian government still interpreted them as farmer-herder clashes.
“How can a clash involve bombs? How can you interpret a situation as a farmer-herder clash when someone is sleeping, and another person comes to kill him and wipe out his entire family? How is that a clash? If we may ask the Nigerian government, what are they clashing over? If you’re telling me there is a clash, then it means there is something both parties are contesting.”
He revealed, “We have foreigners from neighbouring countries in Plateau State who are affecting the Nigerian state. I have said that there is a route in the state that allows people from the Niger Republic to come directly into Jos without passports. Until we give the issue the nomenclature it deserves, there will be no solution.
“You cannot be battling malaria and taking paracetamol. It started in Plateau State and extended to other Middle Belt states, and recently, you can see it in the South-West. What are these terrorists or bandits fighting for? It is the expansion of territories. That’s why if they kill our people, they settle on their land.
“The Nigerian government has done nothing to resettle displaced people. There are people who have been displaced since 2004 on the Plateau and have not been resettled. They’ve been left to their fate and cannot return to their communities.”