The Interfaith Dialogue Forum for Peace (IDFP) has urged the Federal Government to urgently intervene in the renewed wave of violence and killings in Kaduna State, especially in Southern Kaduna and in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area.
The Co-Chairmen of the forum, Alhaji Kunle Sanni and Bishop Sunday Onuoha, said in Abuja in a statement that the renewed violence is saddening as it among others make Nigeria vulnerable to food crisis.
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They noted that although the violence in Southern Kaduna and Birnin Gwari has been a recurring decimal over some years now, this has increased exponentially in frequency and destructiveness in both lives and property recently.
According to him, Southern Kaduna is currently at the receiving end, leading to mutual hate speeches, open threats and calls for attack on individuals, groups and communities.
“The IDFP observes that the violence in Southern Kaduna has resulted in such high-level insecurity that there is significant dislodgement of people particularly in the hinterland communities into IDP camps and abodes of relatives in bigger communities.
“Coming during the farming season, the violence also threatens to unleash hunger on the people of the region and the State generally next year as the predominantly farming communities are restricted to cultivating only their backyard farms for fear of attacks in their far-off farmlands. Vulnerable populations like women and the youth are at high risks,” they said.
The forum lamented that women and the youth both face the risks of death and loss of sources of livelihood; and that women and the youth face the additional risks of rape and a break in educational pursuits respectively.
They express condolence with the families that have lost their loved ones and pray that God give them the fortitude and grace to bear the pains; and also commiserates with the government and the entire citizens of Kaduna State on the situation.
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