Last Wednesday, another violent incident on this police check point, which is about 2km to Pasankori (a palmwine depot) down-slope, would become a grim precursor to the evil that would befall Godogodo, about 8km away, three days later.

As confirmed by Kaduna State Police Spokesman, ASP Aliyu Usman, a band of suspected armed herdsmen, penultimate Wednesday, laid ambush to six policemen manning this check point. A few seconds of rattling gunfire left two cops dead, all Sergeants. Two escaped with wounds, and two were unscathed. The most disturbing dimension of the incident was that the assailants left with two fully loaded AK 47 riffles of the fallen cops.

“As soon as I heard that they made away with two riffles, I knew that an invasion of any of our villages was inevitable,” said a vigilante leader in Godogodo to Saturday Vanguard last Thursday.

“We have heard that Fulani were massing for a serious attack on Godogodo and other places and we told the police and soldiers that we were working with,” he said.

“It was said that they came from Nasarawa State and some from plateaus state to team up with those already on ground and hiding in our deserted villages. On our part, we called in some vigilante from other tribes, and they came. So when we heard about the gun taken from the police, we knew it was just a matter of time,” he said.

In retrospect, the heroic exploits of these vigilante are hardly mentioned in their efforts at safeguarding communities from the aggressions of their perennial foes.


However, a Press Statement on 25th September signed by Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman, acting Director Army Public Relations revealed how they sacrifice their lives for their community in return for nothing. The statement reads: “Gallant troops of 1 Division Nigerian Army in a joint operation with personnel of Nigeria Police and local vigilantes have today repelled a coordinated attack by gunmen on Godogodo town of Kaduna State.

“The troops fought off the attackers and pursued them into the bush, inflicting heavy casualty on them.

“Unfortunately four local vigilantes lost their lives while another 9 were wounded in the course of countering the dastardly attack meant to cause more loss of lives and properties of law abiding citizens of Godogodo Town.”

According to him, the following Fulani were arrested: Lawal Gambo, Yau Sani, Bala Amodu, Ibrahim Maikaru, Abubakar Hassan and Bashiru Isa Ciroma in the cause of the encounter.

That was as much as the ill-trained, poorly armed but highly committed vigilante of Godogodo could go to protecting their homelands.

So what went wrong last Saturday after the vigilante claimed that they were well alert and had informed the Army and Police stationed there? Saturday Vanguard uncovered an unconfirmed disturbing conspiracy.

“We were sitting around, talking and exchanging jokes, when the soldier who in charge of the seven soldiers guiding Godogodo approached us,” said another vigilante.

“ He and his troops were in their pick up van. He came down from the van and came over to us. We went to a side where he said that he had important information to tell us. He said that soldiers from another formation were coming to search Godogodo for firearms. That if any of us had any guns, we must immediately remove them to a safer place, since they were on their way. He said he did not want to be seen as aiding them to bear arms. It was around 5:30pm last Saturday. He left with his soldiers. Some of us, who had hunting guns or den guns ran and took them into hiding. We even called those that were not around to come get their stuff out,” he said.

“Then exactly by 6pm, it was not even dark yet, when we heard gun shots from the side of Unguwan Ninzom part of the town. That part of the town is the most vulnerable, because our people (native and non-native Christians) live there and the place stretches far outwards from the town,” he continued.

“The Fulani gunmen usually don’t touch Hausa people and their property.

hmmmm, it breaks my heart that a once peaceful town like Godogodo is being turned to hell. It is only a naive person who won't know that Agwan Nizom could be an easy target. It is alone in the bush and would take a bike ride of about15 minutes from Godogodo which makes prone to easy attacks ......were the youth there sleeping when war stares them in the face? relying on security men who were probably in Gidan waya or Golgofa....mtchew.

It was Zankan ,now Godogodo. where next? where is our humanity?