Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai has revealed those
sponsoring armed ethnic militia groups in Jos, the capital of Plateau
state.
Buratai said the armed ethnic militia groups in Plateau State were supported and sponsored by elites or elders of the state.
Buratai disclosed this on Wednesday during the burial of three
soldiers who were killed during the violence that rocked the state’s
troubled Barkin Ladi Local Government Area at the Maxwell Khobe Military
Cemetery at 3 Division Headquarters, Rukuba Jos.
Buratai, who was represented by the Operation Safe Haven Commander,
Major-General Augustine Agundu, said, “It is evident that there exist
armed ethnic militia groups sponsored or supported by some elites and
elders who deploy the misguided youths into committing the worst heinous
crimes.
“There is certainly no constitutional provision that allows civilians
to bear firearms but their possession has become a well sort-out
vocation here on the Plateau.”
Expressing regrets over the death of CPL Effiong Mbuotidem, he said: “Human dignity has lost its value on the Plateau.
“The troops of OPSH like all service personnel are officially
detailed to Plateau State to perform the duties upon which they swore an
oath to serve the nation.”