Officials of the Berom Youths Moulder Association (BYM) have alleged that the Special Taskforce in Jos, Operation Safe Haven, operating in Plateau State, is aiding and abetting bandits in killing innocent citizens. The President of BYM, Barr. Dalyop Solomon Mwantiri, stated this during a press conference held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ Plateau State Council, on Thursday.
According to the leader of the Berom native youth group, a soldier shot one of their members dead. “The former youth leader of the village was shot dead from behind by a military operative after the attackers had left the scene,” he said. The youth wondered why security operatives failed to foil the attack.
“The Sector 6 Commander of Operation Safe Haven, OPSH’ s claim that his men were overwhelmed to the extent that none of the attackers were apprehended, wounded, or neutralized is yet another puzzle that needs to be unraveled,” Barr. Dalyop Solomon Mwantiri said.
He informed that the recent attacks in Riyom Local Government Area that led to the death of 27 persons have also displaced 2,447 people, who are presently living in IDP camps without basic social amenities. “Twenty-seven people lost their lives, many were injured, property worth millions of Naira was destroyed, livestock was carted away, and over 2,447 people were displaced,” he added.
The youth leader appealed for humanitarian aid to the survivors of various attacks. “The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction should extend its humanitarian intervention scheme to the families of the deceased, the injured, the Internally Displaced Persons-IDPs, and other villagers who suffered grievous destruction of their crops and farmlands,” he urged.
Explaining how deeply the continuous attacks have affected the entire North Central state negatively, he said, “The rain of terror on the Plateau and elsewhere all around the Middle Belt has produced a curious pattern that is now well-established, and that is: attack, displace, and occupy, thereby making the areas uninhabitable for the original inhabitants.”