As the nation celebrates her 58th independence, the Director General Of The Plateau Peace Building Agency, Joseph Lengman has called on Plateau residents to rededicate themselves to the cause of Peace and freedom as it is in the best interest of the citizenry to work to ensure that the rule of law is upheld, and
justice is meted out to all who have perpetrated evil.
Read Below…
Today is Independence Day in Nigeria. It is a special day that commemorates our independence-freedom from colonial rule and domination.
As a country, there are some gains worth celebrating but for us on the Plateau; these gains are increasingly becoming meaningless in the face of growing insecurity associated with senseless killings and destruction of lives and property on an unimaginable scale.
The events of the last few days are not only heart breaking but also exasperating.
What exactly are we doing to ourselves?
To what depth can we sink any further?
This must stop! And it is only you and I that can stop it, especially those who want to be a part of the solution rather than the problem.
There is absolutely no quick fix to reversing the ugly conflict trend in Plateau state and neither do we have any military solution to it.
Both soldiers and the police can only struggle to restore order but they are unable to resolve the issues-hate, resentment, mutual distrust, fear and deep seated suspicion of one another.
If anything is sure however is the fact that we can only dig our way out of this quagmire. The onus lies only with us and it will require a sincere and genuine effort at building bridges of understanding; repairing of broken relationships and; a deliberate policy to transform the very conditions that gave rise to this highly unpleasant situation in the first place.
The stakes are very high!
We must forcefully continue to condemn these indiscriminate and atrocious attacks, against innocent people, families and communities in Plateau state.
We must do so unequivocally at all levels and by all actors, including politicians, religious leaders, media, civil society, social media users etc. The Peace building agency does so regularly, publicly, and unreservedly.
The perpetrators of violence must never be left with the impression that their actions are accepted by anyone. We must never see violence as a usual thing, and in all its faces, we must condemn and abhor it as a damnable act that it is.
Again we have to work harder to counter the extremist discourse. Tackling the spate of violent attacks and violent extremism means eliminating the spaces where impunity prevails and countering those where extremism resonates.
This is a serious security challenge, but we should not forget its political, economic, social and cultural dimensions. And on this, we have a lot of work to do.
We extend our sincere sympathies to the families and communities that have lost their loved ones during this recent episode of attacks.
Again these attacks have touched the core of our humanity. Our prayers and thoughts are with you, as we continue to call for calm and restraint.
The security agencies are doing their best to contain the situation and we call upon all citizens to cooperate with them.
Let us use this period to rededicate ourselves to the cause of Peace and freedom. It is in our best interest to work to ensure that the rule of law is upheld, and justice is meted out to all who have perpetrated evil.
They should not go unpunished.
Pls stay safe!!
Joseph Lengmang
DG PPBA