Plateau community leader accuses military of aiding Fulani militias during attacks

A community leader in Jebbu Binde village of Ta-Hoss District in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, where gunmen suspected to be Fulani militias attacked on Monday killing over 30 people, has accused the military of supporting the bandits by providing them protection and cover to easily penetrate and attack the community.

The community leader, Rev Davou Musa, who is the Chairman of the Regional Church Council (RCC) of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Riyom, made the allegations in a chat with Ripples Nigeria on Thursday after the visit of Governor Caleb Mutfwang to the community for an on-the-spot assessment of the damage and to condole with the victims.

Rev Musa revealed that the armed assailants would not have found it so easy to invade the community in large numbers and operate for hours despite military operatives stationed only 200 meters away, if they did not have the backing of the soldiers.

According to the RCC Chairman, despite repeated and frantic calls for help, the military refused to come to their aid and refused to intervene to prevent the carnage, with no arrests made in the aftermath.

He blamed the military for failing in its duty to protect the people and accused the personnel of complicity by shielding the attackers and called on the federal government to withdraw the special military task force deployed in the community since they cannot protect the people.

“I have told the GOC in clear terms and I’m repeating it to your hearing that his (GOC) men are busy supporting the Fulani, even in grazing and farmland destruction,” Musa said.

“The assailants found it easy to invade the community and operated for hours and the soldiers who are stationed only 200 meters away refused to come to our aid despite frantic calls made to them.

“The heinous attack claimed innocent lives, left many others injured, and resulted in the destruction of homes, including a church. Food items belonging to villagers were also looted by the attackers, compounding the tragedy.”

Musa also alleged that the soldiers were compromised and more concerned with protecting Fulani cattle than human lives.

“Is it not clear that the military is protecting and shielding the attackers? When Fulani herders are victims of cattle theft, the security forces respond swiftly, deploying multiple Hilux vehicles loaded with armed personnel to investigate and apprehend suspects.

“Conversely, attacks on villages resulting in loss of human life often receive a slower and less robust response. This disparity in security deployment has continued to raise concerns about prioritization and protection of human lives.

‘It is now glaring that the military is compromised and are more concerned with protecting our attackers instead of our people and our communities,” Rev Musa lamented.

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