Victor EzejaWith death tolls rising in the latest killings by bandits in some communities, under Kanam Local Government Area (LGA) of Plateau State, there are indications that some residents are complicit in the criminalities, making the attacks successful.
Speaking in an interview with Channels TV SunriseDaily on Thursday morning, Chairman, Kanam (LGA), Dayabu Garga said the manner in which the bandits launch attacks show that they have informants among the residents who give them information about movement of security operatives in the area.
Garga said they have local hunters and vigilante members who provide some sort of community policing but worry that when the operatives move to a particular direction to combat the bandits, they take another route, to attack and kill residents, noting that such can not happen without having some residents who inform the bandits probably on arrangement for a price.
He said, “We have a workable vigilante groups that work day and night but the unfortunate thing that is our major problem is that we have informants among us who are perhaps, talking with these criminals, giving them information.”
He said the number of persons killed in the latest attack is over 100 and were given mass burial, while scores of people were injured and many displaced from their ancestral homes.
It would be recalled that gunmen on motorcycles attacked Kanam communities on Sunday and reportedly killed many and abducted over 80 persons.
Garga said the bandits who perpetrate these heinous acts have settlements in a thick large forest in the area which serve as their hideout, where they come from to launch attacks on innocent armless people.
The LG boss disclosed that the bandits have been kidnapping people and collecting ransoms but not in this massive scale of attack, and that the forest need to be cleared to dislodge the criminals before the forest becomes the second Sambisa in Nigeria.
He further suggested that the state need to establish a joint team with other states like Taraba and Bauchi to clear the forest which is within their borders.
“Unless that forest is cleared, I foresee it becoming the second Sambisa in Nigeria. We need to be proactive so that our people will be protected,” Garga stated.
He said while there is a need for security operatives to carry out deep investigation into who the crimnals are, where they come from and their motives, the federal government should set up security outposts in the affected areas for 24 hours surveillance and forestalling of further attacks and killings.
Responding, the Plateau State Commissioner for Information, Hon. Dan Manjang said if the state government was aware that criminals are in the forest, it would have taken measures to dislodge them.
Manjang said the matter has gone beyond what local vigilantes can handle, adding that the Federal Government need to review relevant laws to allow states take adequate steps in providing better security for the lives and properties of the citizens.
“The issue has gone beyond vigilantes. There is a lot that needs to be done. If somebody carries bow and arrow to face somebody with an AK-47, then you know that it takes the grace of God for the man with bows and arrows to defeat the man with AK-47. What that goes to tell you is that the laws have to be changed; more powers on security have to be given to the states even for the vigilantes to be able to equip themselves,” the commissioner stated.
Retired army officer, Brigadier General Jonathan Temlong also alluded to the possiblity of some residents of the area colluding with the criminals but said there is need for measures to be taken to strengthen capacity of the people to combat the insecurity.
He advocated enlightenment programmes for the citizens on being security conscious to be able to detect movement of strange persons in their localities, and raise the alarm for organised action to nab the criminals before they strike.
Temlong who is also a security consultant said the members of the communities know themselves and could detect strange persons and movements.
Reacting to the call by some National Assembly members from the area for service chiefs to be sacked because of security lapses leading to the attacks, Temlong said that is not the right thing to do.
He said the lawmakers need to do their oversight work by going to find out what is happening and consult the security officers including veterans to have a good plan on how to tackle the problem.
The retired general faulted the idea of deploying mercenaries to the affected areas, saying such is not the best approach, rather, the government need to strengthen security architecture across the country by recruiting and training more personnel and also deploying appropriate technologies to combat the criminals.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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