Jos/Abuja/Lagos — Thousands of women from Plateau State on Thursday marched on the National Assembly (NASS) in Abuja, with placards which denounced the recurring massacre and sought the intervention of federal lawmakers to end the bloodshed.
The protesters, members of the Plateau State Women Development Association (PSWDA), vowed to turn to the United Nations (UN) if Abuja fails to find a lasting solution.
Just in time, federal Attorney General and Justice Minister, Adetokunbo Kayode, disclosed that international assistance may be needed to compensate the relatives of the victims of what Human Rights Watch called the genocide in Dogon-Hauwa villages near Jos on Sunday.
On Thursday, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) third Armoured Brigade in Jos, Major General Saleh Maina, described as unfair and unguarded public reactions to the military handling of the conflict.
Even with that, the House of Representatives passed a resolution urging the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to redeploy 1,211 corps members now in Plateau to neighhouring states until peace is restored.
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The resolution was sequel to a motion tabled by Ekperikpe Ekpo (PDP, Akwa Ibom), which was unanimously adopted.
The women who protested at the NASS wore black dresses and sang dirges to mourn the killing of about 500 people in the Dogon-Hauwa by Fulani pastoralists.
They urged Acting President Goodluck Jonathan to order the immediate redeployment of Maina and ensure severe punishment for those found guilty of the crime.
PSWDA Secretary General, Zipporah Kpamor, who handed a petition to House of Representatives Speaker, Dimeji Bankole, demanded "a change of the security chiefs" on the Plateau because "they have not guaranteed any security for us, we have lost confidence in them."
Kpamor accused Maina, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-General Abdurahman Danbazzau as well as the Bauchi State Government of complicity in the killings.
"If the Federal Government cannot stop the premeditated genocide and ensure peace in the state, then we will be compelled to go to the United Nations for intervention," she said.
Bankole appealed for calm, after lamenting incessant crises in the nation."
"From now on we (federal lawmakers) will continue to put this incident on the front burner of the Nigerian polity until there is a permanent solution to it," he told the women, who were wailing at this point.
He lamented that the several panels set up by the government on the matter have failed to yield the desired outcome, and "this time around the House of Representatives and the Senate will have to work together since the others have failed us on this issue."
Bankole then held a closed-door meeting with top members of the PSWDA, headed by Rifkatu Izang, and some lawmakers "to discuss the matter thoroughly."
Izang told journalists that, "We are here because we are aware of all the steps taken by the Federal Government and we have come to assure (it) that we are ready to collaborate with it for the return of peace and security in Plateau State."
Part of the solution, as mooted by Kayode, is that the Federal Government may solicit international assistance to compensate the survivors, besides ensuring the prosecution of the culprits and preventing a recurrence of the violence.
Kayode, who spoke through his Assistant, Yomi George, during a visit to him by Swedish Government officials - led by the country's Ambassador to Nigeria, Andreas Baum - noted that since the conflict has become incessant, there is need to address its socio-economic facet.
Baum expressed concern over the latest killings in Jos, where hundreds of lives had earlier been lost.
He urged Nigeria to build peace among the warring communities, and stated the readiness of Swedish Government to help Abuja to engage the communities in peace building dialogue.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) decried the killings and urged Jonathan to treat them as genocide.
It made the remark in a report dated March 11, a copy of which was sent to Jonathan for his "urgent attention."
The report, signed by HRW Sub-Sahara Africa Repertoir, Sonya Maldar, said the slaughter in Dogon-Hauwa was nothing less than "ethnic cleansing."
It wondered how the Nigerian intelligence mechanism could deteriorate so much that it could not pick up anything on the attack.
"It is our humble opinion that the perpetrators of this dastardly act are not faceless, and their sponsors can also be found and made to face the full wrath of the law," the report stated.
"The recent killings are one too many, and we therefore call for immediate and decisive action on your part. There is a need for you to see this wanton destruction of lives as ethnic cleansing or genocide in its entire dimension and investigate the killings with such in mind."
The report asked top security officials to provide detailed account of what happened, failing which they should be sanctioned.
In his reaction, however, Maina, the GOC, said public criticism of the Army over the incident is unfair and unguarded.
He told a press conference at the Maxwell Kobe Cantonment that the military as an institution is the last line of defence for the people, and it has been doing this since the crisis began.
Maina, who doubles as the Commander of the Presidential Special Military Task Force in Plateau State, said no government official informed him of the planned attack before it erupted.
He added that even when text messages were flying around, he made sure that the Army Commanders responded to all distress calls, which led to the arrest of five of the suspected attackers who were handed over to the police.
On the indictment of the Army by Governor Jonah Jang, he said as a retired Air Force officer and former military Governor of two states, he is sure that Jang was quoted out of context, because he knows the channels of communication and cannot be that careless with such insinuation against the military
Maina maintained that the crisis had started before he came to Jos, and the military has no tribe or religion for anyone to allege that soldiers have taken sides.
He said he commanded the troops that fought Boko Haram in Maiduguri, where most of the casualties were Muslims like himself.
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When will all these people be truely accountable for their actions or inactions. How can a whole GOC refer to the Army as the "last line of defence". If this mess is to be seriously addressed then the following questions need to be answered:- 1) how can such killings occur whilst a curfew is going on? 2) Where was the so-called military for at least 3 hours. 3) Why was the Boko Haram leader murdered instead of being allowed to reveal the sponsors of the mass murder
Mr GOC please do not refer to the Boko Haram as if it was a victory. It is obvious to Nigerians that it was yet another cover-up operation. The truth is like smoke. It can not be covered. Sooner or later, the truth will be revealed. All the leaders involved in this calculated genocide will be revealed sooner or later.
As for the governor of Bauchi state, how can this person openly encourage violence and get away with it. Who is going to educate these leaders? Irrespective of your religious inclination, as a leader you have to separate religion from the state. Obviously, our leaders are having difficulty doing this. Dear governor of bauchi state sir, your purpose as the governor is certainly not to pursue your religious agenda. If you do think that your religion is the greatest thing since sliced bread, then show it by example and let people choose. You can not force religion down peoples throats.
Fellow Nigerians, see these people for what they truely are. No one sponsoring such activities can offer anything good to Nigeria. They activities is simply a threat to the unity of our country and if this is not stopped now, they will succeed in splitting this country