Taraba state governor Darius Ishaku has condemned the latest crisis
on the Mambilla plateau in Sardauna local government area of the
state.
In an interview, the Senior Special Assistant, Media to the governor,
Mr Bala Dan Abu, said that the crisis was not only unfortunate and
unacceptable but totally uncalled for.
Abu said that the Plateau was a treasure not just to the state but
the nation at large and an envy of the international community and
called on the people to heed the governor’s advice and allow peace a
chance for the ongoing development of the area to take its full
course.
“The crisis is so unfortunate, unacceptable and uncalled for. It is an
unnecessary waste of lives and property and it will only stall the
ongoing development of the area.
“Mambilla is a national treasure and an envy of the international
community. All that is needed now is for the people there to allow
peace a chance so that ongoing projects there can continue and
more investment would be attracted to the area. But you don’t
achieve all that with the people continuously taking arms against one
another. We need peace there”, he said.
Meanwhile, the Taraba state police command on Saturday expressed
fear that the death toll in recent attacks on villages on the
Mambilla Plateau in Sardauna local government area may rise even
as normalcy returns to the troubled areas.
The Command’s Public Relations Officer ASP David Misal disclosed
this in an interview with newsmen in Jalingo.
Misal, who confirmed that four persons lost their lives in the
Thursday night clash between the Fulani and native Mambillas in
Inyiwa village, said a similar attack occurred in the late hours of
Friday at Yerimaru village, where there are indications of casualty
which the command was still investigating.
“I can confirm to you that there was fights between the Fulani and
Mambilla in Inyiwa and Yerimaru villages around Kakara, on the
Mambilla plateau. So far, four persons have been confirmed dead
from Inyiwa village but because of the remote nature of the area,
we are still trying to figure out the exact number of casualties at
Yerimaru village.
“Our men are already on ground there but since network is a
challenge there, they can not reach us with the exact figures until
they come out from the area to places where they can access
network.
“What we know is that the crisis is between the Fulani’s and the
Mambilla but we are still trying to figure out what precipitated the
fights and ensure that no reprisals are allowed”, Misal said.
Misal assured that normalcy has returned to the troubled areas with
massive deployment of security to forestall any further breakdown
of law and order in the area.
“We are working with sister agencies to ensure that absolute peace
returns to the affected areas. As at this morning, normalcy had
returned and the people did not even had cause to flee their homes.
Both the soldiers, NSCDC and other sister agencies are working with
us as a team.”
He also confirmed that several houses were destroyed in both
villages and other property destroyed.
It would be recalled that crisis in parts of the Mambilla between the
Mambillas and Fulani in June last year led to the death of scores
and wanton destruction of property and displacement of thousands.
This led to the constitution of a judicial Panel of inquiry that is
currently working to bring lasting peace to the area. The Fulani had
however refused to appear before the panel to make inputs.