Youths block Jos-Abuja highway with dead bodies to protest killings
Youths in Riyom Community, the gateway to Jos in Plateau State have blocked the Jos-Abuja highway with the bodies of persons killed by gunmen at a mining site to protest against killings in some parts of the area by gunmen.
On Tuesday evening, an alarm was raised about a possible attack on the community and its environs as armed men were sighted within the area.
The message, “Security alert: villages such as Sham, Wereng, Kum, Byei of Riyom LGA, and Farin Lamba and Dabwak in Jos South to be attacked any moment from now as armed Fulani have been spotted moving toward the area. Chaha, Rangyel, K-Vom and Chakarum, should also be on a serious watch,” was sent on several social media platforms.
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After the message, an attack was later carried out on Tuesday night at a mining site, leaving a number of people dead.
Security operatives were sent to the affected areas but were allegedly attacked by angry community members.
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It was gathered that on Wednesday, residents of Farin Lamba, and some parts of the nearby Riyom Local Government Area, took to the highway dragging some of the bodies along.
As a result of the development, many motorists and travellers were stranded along Mararaban Jama’a with many commuters forced to turn back and sought for alternative routes to their destination.
The State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Alfred Alabo said, “We are on top of the situation, we are managing it so it does not escalate.
“The Area Commander has found a way to divert traffic because we can’t stop the movement of the people.
“They were moving with the bodies so we were able to persuade them to remove the bodies and they agreed. We appeal to the people to be calm.
“The people killed were mining away from the town when they were ambushed and we are not happy with that. We saw the alert but Farin Lamba is big so we did not know the exact location.
“We appeal to people to always give timely information and the details that would help us to respond.
“We are working on the situation but we must emphasise precision when giving information.”
Also, the Plateau State Governor-elect, Caleb Mutfwang, has condemned the attack.
A statement by his Special Assistant (Media), Gyang Bere, said Mutfwang has noted with pain “the bloody attack by bandits on innocent citizens at a mining site in Farin Lamba community of Jos South Local Government Area, which led to the loss of lives.”
“The Governor-elect condemned the attack in totality and appealed to security agencies to fish out the perpetrators to face the full wrath of the law.
“He also appealed to security personnel to do all in their power to halt further attacks on Plateau communities,” the statement said.
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