Plateau Calls For Justice As Fifteen Bandits’ Victims Get Mass Burial

On Monday, 15 people who were killed in a shooting attack in the Gidan Ado community in Plateau State’s Riyom Local Government Area were buried in a mass funeral.

The attack, which occurred late Sunday night, left several houses burnt, many injured, and others displaced.

The Plateau State Commissioner for Information, Musa Ashoms, confirmed the incident and condemned the attack, urging security agencies to apprehend the perpetrators.

A youth leader in the community, Song Muru, confirmed the attack and detailed the devastation.

“Yesterday evening, being Sunday, I received a distress call from Gidan Ado, an Irigwe settlement in Ganawuri Chiefdom, reporting a devastating Fulani attack,” Muru said.

“I immediately reached out to the Special Task Force and the police for intervention. Regrettably, this morning, I was informed by one of the youth leaders that the attack has resulted in the loss of at least six lives, with others still missing.

“But so far, we recovered 15 dead bodies following the attack. The settlement has also suffered significant destruction, including burnt houses and other losses. My heart goes out to the affected families and the entire Irigwe community.

I condemn this senseless violence and urge the authorities to take swift action and provide relief to the victims, as many people have been displaced, especially women and children.”

Commissioner Ashoms condemned the attack as barbaric and called for decisive action to prevent further violence.

“This actually happened in Gidan Ado, in Ganawuri community, Riyom Local Government, where the assailants came and took away the precious lives of our people like that. It is barbaric,” Ashoms said.

“As a government, we will continue to call on such people that are engaged in such a barbaric act to desist. Our people are known for their peaceful disposition. We have never provoked anyone, and we will never provoke anyone, and we will continue to live in peace. But we want these assailants to desist from the barbaric act. It does not pay to take people’s lives.”

Ashoms added, “Today, we had a mass burial for the people that were lost, and we pray that God will repose their souls. While security agencies have been doing their best to check killings, they should redouble their efforts and arrest the perpetrators of these acts.

“As a government, we are sad; we condole the families of the deceased, and we are looking forward to the arrest of the perpetrators so that this kind of thing can be nipped in the bud.”

The attack brings to mind last year’s Christmas Eve violence in Plateau State, which resulted in multiple deaths and the destruction of homes.

As of press time, the spokesman for the Plateau State Police Command, Alabo Alfred, and the spokesman for the Military Task Force, Major Samson Zhakom, had yet to release statements regarding the Sunday attack.

In response to such incidents, the Plateau State Police Command had earlier banned night grazing and farming activities in the state.

Other measures include deploying personnel across all 17 LGAs, banning late-night beer parlours, mining activities, and commercial motorcycles.

The state Commissioner of Police, Emmanuel Adesina, said these measures followed engagements with stakeholders to ensure a peaceful atmosphere during and after the Christmas festive season.