Organised crime in Plateau is viewed as cattle rustling, which is
wrong and this is what the perpetrators want us to believe, says the
Special Task Force (STF), Commander in Plateau State, Major General
Augustine Agundu.
He said group of syndicates who varied from different tribes across
the State are involved in the business which has been on for many years.
The STF boss, who spoke to journalists recently in Jos at a briefing
to enumerate the activities of the Command code named Operation Safe
Haven (OPSH), also said that the act has given rise to the many killings
that has hitherto bedevilled the State spanning years of incessant
violence.
He said, “There is nothing like cattle rustling in Plateau State,
what we have is organised crime. I call it organised crime because it
does not relate to any particular tribe.
Some criminals within a tribe could easily steal cattle from their
own locality and hand it over to their own proxy of another tribe
because tribe A’ could not go into the community of tribe B’ because of
the restriction measures put in place and at the end of it all, there is
a sharing formula.
“Funny enough, most of the elders are also complicit in it because
they are aware of this level of organisation and coordination of
criminals within their tribes and yet not ready to give up those who
have been committing this crime, and that is why I have tagged it
organise crime”, Gen. Agundu said.
However, the Defence Headquarters has laud the effort of the OPSH in
restoring relative peace in the State, saying that the military peace
efforts being implemented in the state through the OPSH is yielding
positive results.
Acting Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen. John Agim, told
Journalists that the security strategies put in place has greatly
reduced the crisis situation on ground.
He said, “The Operation Safe Haven has relatively restored normalcy
within Jos-Bukuru metropolis and stabilised other areas, especially in
the hinterland through the Defence Headquarters’ Operation 777
initiative.
Because of the restoration of law and order that would provide an
environment of peaceful coexistence as contained in the Chief of Defence
Staff Operational Directives, OPSH is concluding its plan for the
voluntary return of the internally displaced persons back to their
ancestral homes.”