Wanton destruction of lives and property struck Taraba and Plateau states penultimate week, with casualty figures put at between 70 and 100. In Taraba alone, over 70 people were reportedly killed in crises that pitted the Tiv against their Kutep neighbours. Suspected Fulani gunmen had earlier attacked and killed six soldiers on routine patrol between Amar and Kambari villages in Karim Lamido Local Government Area, according to reports. The mayhem later spread to Takum, the council area of former Minister of Defence, General Theophilus Danjuma (rtd); the Taraba Governor-elect, Darius D. Ishaku; and Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Mark Useni. The killings witnessed in Takum were said to be carried out by irate youths on a revenge mission occasioned by the killing of 13 of their kinsmen by assailants from a rival tribe.
The southern part of the state, where Takum is located, is said to be experiencing a rising wave of violence. In April 2014, about 25 persons were reportedly killed in Ndo-Yaku village in Wukari LGA of the state, also in the same axis, despite the presence of security operatives drafted from some neigbouring states in the North East part of the country to help halt the attacks. During the latest violence in Takum, security operatives posted to the area were accused of nonchalance too, while the rampaging youths seized the law by the throat without qualms. A 24-hour curfew imposed on Takum could not rein in the excesses of the youths, it was said.
In Plateau State, Fulani herdsmen also killed 30 people in four villages identified as Vat, Pandadi, Zakukpang and Dorong. The attackers reportedly penetrated the villages through Jos East LGA. The security agencies, particularly the Special Task Force on Jos Crisis, were also fingered for their failure to protect life and property in the affected areas. In July 2012, a senator from Plateau State, Gyang Dantong and the Majority Leader of the State House of Assembly, Mr. Gyang Fulani were killed, while attending the mass burial of about 50 victims of attacks on villages in Barkin Ladi and Riyom LGAs of the state. The killing came shortly after the discovery of the remains of over 50 persons, mostly women and children, burnt inside the residence of a local pastor where they took refuge following the attack on about 14 villages by suspected Fulani herdsmen. Dantong and Fulani were shot dead at Maseh village in Riyom LGA, while the over 50 victims of the herdsmen’s attack were being buried.
Just three months ago, Fulani herdsmen also sacked Egba village in Agatu LGA of Benue State, killing over 90 persons, including women and children, in the early hours of Sunday, March 15. The entire community was razed; alongside economic trees, food barns and farmland. Such incidents have come to stay in most parts of the country, especially up North. But whenever such tragedy strikes, whether in Taraba, Plateau, Ebonyi, Osun, Akwa- Ibom or elsewhere, the authorities vow to track down the culprits and bring them to justice. But in the end, none of such is achieved. The root cause of the violence is also glossed over; and what follows oftentimes is the escalation of violence.
Repeated complaints about the cavalier attitude of security operatives manning the strife-torn parts of Taraba and Plateau states, for example, speak volumes on the scant confidence individuals and communities repose in the security agencies concerning the protection of life and property, as well as their ability to facilitate the apprehension, diligent investigation and prosecution of the purveyors of this evil. Of what relevance are security operatives that are docile and are in no way better than mere ornaments, even when their duly assigned beats are burning?
In all of the cases cited, impunity is evident. And what feeds the audacity is the fact that the attackers are conscious of not just the nation’s weak security system, but its largely impotent and compromised criminal justice system. Ours has for several decades been a criminal justice institution that flaunts miserably scant testimonial on satisfactory investigation, prosecution and conviction of even known criminals. This will help explain why individuals and groups resort to self help that, more often than not, lead to atrocities. No country where impunity rules can pride itself as a civilized or viable human space. Let the perpetrators of the evils in Taraba, Plateau and other states be fished out and punished.
