No fewer than 22 persons were on Sunday killed while many others were injured in fresh attacks in the villages of Barikin Ladi and Mangu town of Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State.
The spokesperson of the state police command, DSP Alabo Alfred, who confirmed the latest killings, also confirmed that two persons had been killed in Mangu town as reported by Daily Trust yesterday.
While the killing in Mangu occurred in the evening, the second happened in the night when gunmen stormed the villages of Kak, Ranyam, Nging, Lohala and Buka of Barikin Ladi LGA, and killed about 20 residents.
The latest incident came three days after 13 persons were killed in the Rawuru community of Barikin Ladi.
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There have been a series of attacks and killings recently in the state, especially in Bakin Ladi, Riyom and Mangu LGAs of the state.
Alfred said, “In Barikin Ladi, we got reports that about 15 people lost their lives yesterday and today, another five have been buried which makes the total number to be 20. In Mangu, two people were killed while one other was injured. What happened in Mangu was a problem among the citizens of the area.
“You know Plateau issue very well. It was almost about to be painted to religious or ethnic. But our men came into play and controlled the situation and restore normalcy in the area.
The command is saddened with this information. We don’t want more deaths in Plateau. We are advising people to get the phone numbers of our DPOs and feed them with information around them. Let us do well to inform the police. We want to live in peace,” he added.
The state governor, Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, in a statement by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Gyang Bere, yesterday expressed sadness over the attacks.
The governor while sympathizing with the victims and their families, urged the security agencies to diligently execute their constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property in the state in order to put a stop to the wanton spilling of blood and burning of property.
He told the security agencies to consider the redeployment of more personnel to the communities that were under attack to prevent further destruction of lives and properties.
He also appealed to them to remain neutral and refrain from meddling in local politics that is outside their purview.
The statement said, “Governor Mutfwang reiterated the commitment of his administration to work with the existing security apparatus at the federal level, using multifaceted approaches to secure innocent communities who have been under invasion by the bandits.
“He saluted the gallantry of some of the officers and men of various security agencies who have made sufficient sacrifices in curbing the spate of attacks and encouraged them to put in more effort to halt the ugly trend.
“While commiserating with the families of the deceased, Governor Mutfwang reassured Plateau citizens of his commitment to addressing their plights, particularly the issues of insecurity so as to bequeath the requisite development and progress the state is yearning for.
“He called on citizens irrespective of tribe, religion or political affiliations to join hands with the government in finding lasting solutions to the unwarranted attacks on innocent villagers without any form of provocation.”
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