A recent statement by former Defence Minister, General Theophilus Y.
Danjuma that the citizenry should defend themselves from rampaging
herdsmen racking havoc in communities across the country has continue to
generate reactions from far and near, as the Plateau PDP Elders Forum
have thrown their weight behind the retired General.
Chairman of the Elders Forum for Plateau Central Senatorial District,
Chief John Mankilik, in a chat with journalists, cautioned Nigerians
not to take the alarm raised by the elder statesman for granted.
It would be recalled that the retired General had over a week ago
asked Nigerians, especially the people of Taraba State, his home state,
to protect themselves or risk being killed by the herdsmen.
His words: “You must rise to protect yourselves from these people; if you
depend on the armed forces to protect you, you will all die”.
The former Minister of Defence accused the military of colluding with
herdsmen and creating routes for them to carry out attacks.
The Chairman lamented the incessant killings of innocent souls within
the middle belt States particularly Benue, Plateau and Taraba.
“We are totally with Gen. Theophilus Y. Danjuma as he spoke the minds
of the bewilderd people of Nigeria to the menace of the Fulani
herdsmen.
“A trend seems to emerge in the Middle Belt States of Nigeria that
there seems in correlation between President Buhari’s visits (Like
Taraba, Plateau and Benue) and bloodshed trailing during such visits,‘’
the elders claimed.
The elders decried the killings at Daffo District in Bokkos Local
Government of the state where they claimed 30 persons were killed while
several are still missing.
They expressed dismay with the way and manner the Plateau Government
handled the situation when it hid away from the President just to score
cheap political point at the detriment of the people of the state.
“More disgruntle was the two sons of Bokkos in the persons of Sen.
Joshua Dariye and Chief Jethro Akun, who got the opportunity to address
the president but kept mute over the killings in their home front.
“While Akun’s village and community was being extinguished, all he
could effort to tell the president was that he sponsored stories in
seven national dailes in support of the president’s 2019 ambition.
“The duo (Dariye and Akun) have endanger the dignity and integrity of
Plateau Central Senatorial District by sadly and shockingly declaring a
clean bill of health for Plateau even when fighting was on-going in
Akuns village with all houses, including his own, were been razed down
by terrorists , ’’ they pointed out.
The forum continued, “In this state of despondency, it may be very
unfair to dimiss Gen T.Y. Danjuma’s call to self defence as just a call
to anarchy while the legitimate security forces who are supposed to
protct all and sundry have failed to disarmed the Fulani herdsmen.’’
The Elders, however, called on the people of Plateau to rise up and rescue the State.