Mutfwang Re-imposes 24-hour Curfew on Plateau LG As Gunmen Kill Another 12

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos

Plateau State Governor, Mr. Caleb Mutfwang, has again imposed a 24-hour curfew on Mangu Local Government Area of the state, following fresh attacks on Farinkasa-Kerana and Sabon-gari communities in the council area that led to the killing of no fewer than 12 persons.

Although a 24-hour curfew had earlier been imposed on the council by the Interim Management Committee Chairman, Mr. Markus Artu, following earlier attacks and killings, the attacks had however continued unabated as several lives and properties were continually lost with the recent being the killings in Farinkasa-Kerana and Sabon-gari.

The gunmen, alleged to be Fulani militias, in the recent attacks had invaded Farinkasa-Kerana and Sabon-gari on Saturday night killing no fewer than 12 persons, with several others fatally injured and houses burnt.

Worried by the development, the governor, in consultation with the State Security Council, decided to re-impose the curfew on the local government possibly to give force to the earlier one imposed by the Interim Management Committee Chairman on the council.

Consequently, movements within the local overnment have been totally banned until further notice except for security personnel and persons on essential duties, with security agencies directed to ensure total enforcement.

Meanwhile, the Mwaghavul Development Association (MDA), a pressure group in Mangu, has alleged that at least 53 communities have been attacked in the last two months, with over 207 persons killed.

Addressing the press in Jos, the group blamed the attacks on Fulani militias whom they described as terrorists, adding that several persons are currently missing in the communities after the attacks.

The group, led by its National President, Chief Joseph Gwankat, lamented that the villages and farms deserted by victims of the attacks have become grazing fields for the Fulani herders.

Calling on government to rise up to the occasion, Gwankat urged the government to take full responsibility for educating children below the age of 10 who have lost both parents to the serial attacks. 

He also urged government to make special arrangement for the final year students of secondary schools in the communities, whose ongoing West African School Certificate (WASC) examinations have been disrupted as a result of the attacks.