The ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), in Plateau State, on Sunday, accused the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state of inciting people against one another over the recent killing of members of the Anaguta ethnic group in Yelwa Zangam of Jos North Local Government Area of the state.
At least, 37 people were reportedly killed while many were injured in the attack.
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In a press conference held in Jos, the APC’s Acting Caretaker Chairman of the State, Hon. Enoch Fanmak Ramnan, while condemning the killings, also accused the PDP in the state of sponsoring miscreants to move the corpses taken to the Plateau Specialist Hospital to the State Assembly and then to the Government House to paint the governor in a bad light.
According to the chairman, the PDP was orchestrating the violence to destroy the image of the governor and the six years of peaceful co-existence enjoyed in the state to achieve its political relevance.
He said: “We have noted their unacceptable utterances and inciting comments on both the traditional and social media which are carefully targeted at discrediting the Governor of Plateau State Rt. Hon. (Dr) Simon Bako Lalong and portraying the Government as uncaring, with the hope of reviving their faded glory as a rejected political party in the State and country at large.
“We have a lot of evidence to prove this claim but we can cite a few to expose to the people of Plateau State and Nigerians the hidden agenda of the PDP to use crises and the lives of innocent people as a bargaining chip for political relevance. We will not allow this futile dream to come true.
“After the recent unfortunate attack on Yelwa Zangam village, the corpses of those gripping were evacuated to the Plateau Specialist Hospital for proper handling.
“However, the members of the party and their cohorts forced their way into the hospital, harassed and intimidated the hospital staff, and forcefully took away the corpses for a roadshow just to score cheap political points.
“This is a sacrilege against the culture and traditions of the land as well as the height of dishonour for the dead.
“Unfortunately, they failed to achieve their aim beyond gripping headlines and showing how inhuman they can be even to the dead,” he added.
In his reaction to the accusation, the Publicity Secretary of the PDP in the state, John Akan, said; “that is not true.
“How can we invite people? How can we play with the lives of people because of politics? It is all about facts on the ground.
“The APC is confused. Anybody speaking from that direction is confused. It clearly shows that the corpses of people are there. So, our position is far from incitement.”
