Unic Press UK: A few weeks’ ago, the Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai said his government had paid huge sums of money as a measure to persuade the Fulani people to cease the killings, nay genocide in the southern part of Kaduna State.
Kaduna state Governor Nasir El-Rufai
Governor El-Rufai spoke to the media in Kaduna:
“For southern Kaduna, we didn’t understand what was going on and we decided to set up a committee under Gen. Martin Luther Agwai (rtd) to find out what was going on there. What was established was that the root of the problem has a history starting from the 2011 post election violence.
“Fulani herdsmen from across Africa bring their cattle down towards Middle Belt and Southern Nigeria. The moment the rains starts around March, April, they start moving them up to go back to their various communities and countries.
“Unfortunately, it was when they were moving up with their cattle across Southern Kaduna that the elections of 2011 took place and the crisis trapped some of them. “Some of them were from Niger, Cameroon, Chad, Mali and Senegal. Fulanis are in 14 African countries and they traverse this country with the cattle.
“So many of these people were killed, cattle lost and they organised themselves and came back to revenge.
“So a lot of what was happening in Southern Kaduna was actually from outside Nigeria. We got a hint that the late Governor Patrick Yakowa got this information and he sent someone to go round some of these Fulani communities, but of course after he died, the whole thing stopped. That is what we inherited. But the Agwai committee established that.
“We took certain steps. We got a group of people that were going round trying to trace some of these people in Cameroon, Niger republic and so on to tell them that there is a new governor who is Fulani like them and has no problem paying compensations for lives lost and he is begging them to stop killing.
“In most of the communities, once that appeal was made to them, they said they have forgiven. There are one or two that asked for monetary compensation. They said they have forgiven the death of human beings, but want compensation for cattle. We said no problem, and we paid some. As recently as two weeks ago, the team went to Niger republic to attend one Fulani gathering that they hold every year with a message from me.” (Gov Nasir El-Rufai)
Given the incessant killings in the southern part of Kaduna State, and the fact that the area is heavily dominated by Christians, many analysts have contended that there is a sort of vile campaign by Islamic extremists and terror groups to grossly decimate Christians in this part of Nigeria.
The most recent mortal attack in the southern part of Kaduna seems to be the killings of innocents in Goska village in Jema’a local government area on Saturday, the 24th December 2016, by arsonists suspected to be Fulani/herdsmen.
Arson and killing of innocents by suspected Fulani herdsmen have been rampant in the southern part of Kaduna state, Dec 2016
Reacting to the attack on the people of Goska village, the Southern Kaduna Peoples’ Union (SOKAPU) in a press statement on Monday, the 26th December 2016, said:
“… Burnt and killed on 24th December 2016, while happily engrossed in preparing for the Christmas celebration, secured in their knowledge that a 24-hour curfew meant to keep them indoors would also keep away their killers. Alas how wrong they were.
“SOKAPU is calling on all people of goodwill to personally hold Governor Nasir El-rufai responsible for all those murdered in Goska village because these killings took placed under a 24-hour curfew, imposed on Zangon Kataf, Kaura and Jema’a LGs by the Governor. While people were forced to stay indoors, pampered marauding herdsmen whose presence around Goska has been noticed and reported by people around that area for almost three days, attacked the town and for hours killed and burnt without let or hindrance from security. This amply confirmed our assertion that the 24-hour curfew slammed on the 3 LGs in Southern Kaduna was just to punish the people for daring to protest the persistent killings in their villages on 20th December when El-rufai visited kafanchan.
“It means the Governor lied on December 21 when, in justifying the 24-hour curfew slammed on the 3 LGs said, “The State Security Council said it took the step following credible intelligence about risk to lives and property in the areas.” More than 20 communities have been attacked and hundreds killed without the Governor getting any ‘credible intelligence’ to lives and property but he became drowned in ‘credible intelligence’ to justify his curfew when youths and women protested the killings in his presence.
“To confirm that the Governor’s sole intention was to punish those who protested against him, look at the answer he gave State House correspondents when on 22nd December, he visited Aso Rock to get endorsement for the 24-hour curfew from Mr. President. “I don’t think the state government should be blamed, those responsible for the violence that broke out in those parts of the state should be held responsible for that. We have not imposed curfew in other parts of the state, we had to impose curfew here because of the situation that was caused by irresponsible behaviour by certain people.”
“Those who initially thought the 24-hour curfew was to stop the herdsmen from continuous killings now can see the real reason for it.
“Even the hundreds of policemen, soldiers and other security personnel quickly drafted to those 3 LGs, especially Kafanchan were just to enforce the curfew and arrest those the Governor felt disrespected him or trying to defend themselves and not to stop the killings. This was further confirmed by the attack on Goska, because despite the hundreds of security men brought in from all over, Goska village, just some few kilometers away from Kafanchan town was still attacked.” (SOKAPU)
It is obvious that the Nigerian government and the Kaduna State government failed in protecting the people in the southern part of Kaduna having been unable to effectively address the issue of security in this part of Nigeria. Obviously, there is yet to be a robust plan to avert a re-occurrence of this sort of mortal attack on the people, who the Nigerian government is obligated to protect.
There is a possibility that the people in the southern part of Kaduna State would resort to self-help, perhaps effect reprisal attacks given the seeming collaboration of the Fulanis/herdsmen with the Kaduna State government.
