Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State has raised an alarm that the security agencies in the country have been infiltrated by fifth columnists, including people who are agents of criminals unleashing mayhem on Plateau and other parts of the country.

The governor made this claim Wednesday on Trust TV’s Daybreak Show while responding to questions on the response of security agencies after violent attacks in the state and other parts of the country.

Plateau State recently suffered coordinated attacks on 23 villages in Bokkos and Barkin Ladi local government areas, which left over 150 dead and many others injured.

After the attacks, there had been outrage across the country on how such coordinated attacks could have taken place despite the presence of the military’s Operation Safe Haven in the state, in addition to other security agencies.

There was also the revelation that despite several distress calls by the communities, the assailants carried out the attacks for hours and left before the security agencies arrived.

Recall that shortly after the sporadic attacks on Plateau villages between December 23 and 24, 2023, Governor Mutfwang said the military received 36 distress calls.

“I was made to understand by the GOC that on Saturday (the eve of the attacks) alone, they had distress calls from 36 points almost simultaneously.

“That will tell you that that is a logistic issue right there…,” the governor stated.


‘Many loopholes in security architecture’

Responding to a question during his interview with Trust TV on where the problem lies, the governor said the work of these fifth columnists within the security agencies makes it difficult for prompt response by the security agencies.

He said, in many instances, several lives of security personnel have been lost after being ambushed due to information leaked by the fifth columnists.

He said, “…Let me also say this; fifth columnists have infiltrated the security agencies. This is a fact we must confront as a nation.

There are many people who should not be there; they are agents of these criminals, and sometimes they even compromise their colleagues. And that is why you have a lot of ambushes sometimes when these security agencies are going on operations.”

The governor added that President Bola Tinubu must give a very firm directive to the security agencies that in the ongoing recruitment processes, diligence must be taken.

“Diligence must be observed to ensure that wrong elements are not recruited into the armed forces and the security agencies. But there must also be a mechanism to be able to fish out these bad eggs within the security services.

“It is only when we do that, that there will be professionalism and discipline, and also some bit of empathy to the victims of these attacks,” he said. He said while the government continues to conscientise and mobilise the communities to be able to defend themselves, the overzealousness of some security officers on the ground makes the process difficult and renders the government’s efforts to be counter-productive.


Self-defence is necessary

Governor Mutfwang said communities in Plateau were being advised to be vigilant.

“I will continue to ensure that the communities are sufficiently conscientious to look out for one another. And so, that also gives the security agencies the opportunity to come in as their response time will be greatly reduced.

“There are areas where we can improve, certainly, but beyond that, we are also trying to ensure that the communities themselves are sufficiently conscientised and mobilised to be able to defend themselves, because the security forces can only come in and go, the people still remain in their localities, and they form borders at the last line of defence.

“We must be able to balance. We cannot just leave people to possess guns without control and accountability. And so, my own is that even if we are armed in communities, there must be a registration process.

“You should be able to boost the morale of those who stand up to defend their communities and not arrest them. We have had a few excesses, which we have reported to the authorities.

“We have witnessed a lot of overzealousness by some of the security agencies’ operatives on the ground, who instead of cooperating with locals, when they find them sometimes with ordinary machetes, they confiscate them and we have engaged their commanders to say no, this is not right,” he said.

The governor also said he is an advocate of state police and balanced gun control.

“I am a firm believer in state police. Sincerely, I have heard so many arguments about it: the tendency of governors to misuse their powers, and so on and so forth.

We cannot continue to live in fear and refuse to face realities. Globally, security is a local issue. And unless we can bring it down to the level of the communities, we may not achieve much success,” he said.


We’ve our shortcomings

Governor Caleb also admitted that since governors are human beings, the tendency to misuse or abuse of power cannot be ruled out.

He said examples of countries like the United States of America can be used to counter this fear, arguing that where there is noticeable evidence of abuse of state police by any governor, the federal police, as is the case in the USA, can be called in to restore order.

“So, I think for effectiveness, we cannot run away from the issue of state police. We must look at it critically; all the talks about community policing by the Nigeria Police Force. I do not think it is effective, because the time span for dissemination of information and decision making is very critical. When you have a situation where there is an attack in the community and the police will (only) be able to mobilise to counter it at three, four hours away.

“It doesn’t make sense. So, we must be able to bring them closer to the theatre of conflict,” he said.

While debunking the reports that the Plateau State government was operating a militia in the form of Operation Rambo, the governor said his take on community defending themselves informed the government’s effort to conscientise and mobilise the communities to be able to stand up against attackers in their own controlled way before the security agencies are able to mobilise to the areas.


We’ll study the allegations

When contacted yesterday, the spokesman for the Nigerian Army, Onyema Nwachukwu explained that he would not be able to respond accordingly until the statements made by the governor were properly studied.

Nwachukwu, a Major-General, added that the army, and of course the entire military are professional and regimented organisations that cannot hurriedly respond to issues.

He said the comments needed to be examined after which he would get in touch with appropriate authorities before responding accordingly, if there is a need to do so.

“Let me first see the statement. The army is a professional organisation. I’m not speaking for myself but for the army. I will have to first study the governor’s comment after which we will respond accordingly, if there is a need for it,” he said.

In the same vein, the Director, Defence Information, Tukur Gusau, a Brigadier-General, also said he would like to see the clip or the statement before giving any response.

“I’m just hearing this from you. I will like to see the video clip or the statement, so that I will know how to reply,” the senior military officer told one of our correspondents in a telephone interview.

Daily Trust recalled that a few days after the incidents on the Plateau, some locals protested and called for total withdrawal of the military from the crises-prone areas, saying they preferred to have the police and other security operatives.

But the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, during a visit to the state, denied the allegation that troops of the Nigerian Army deployed to Plateau State were biased in their operations.

Lagbaja said it was incorrect to accuse the Nigerian Army personnel, who he said have been tirelessly working to restore peace in the state, of being biased in their operations, adding that the organisation is impartial in its operations.

The army chief emphasised that the Nigerian Army is composed of individuals from diverse tribes and religions. Hence, it should not be regarded as personal property that can be manipulated by any single individual.

He stated this while responding to allegations by some members of the communities regarding impartiality in army operations, during a visit to NTV, one of the affected communities in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of the state.

dre11:


https://dailytrust.com/security-agencies-infiltrated-by-fifth-columnists-plateau-gov/

DMerciful:
I have a feeling this governor is too soft to fix insecurity in Plateau State. He should be calling the failure Tinubu out just like Orthom did to the heavyweight champion of incompetence Bubu

amnesty7:

The same Ortom that Benue people humiliated? Even his people knew what a softie he was as a governor.

jaxin119:
Even nairaland has been infiltrated by fulani terrorists.

I await the usual gag and ban from nair for calling out fulani terrorists.

SKYHIGHfx:
9ja tire me, infact am tired of this country, this country might actually be the biblical hell.

amnesty7:
Plateau Crisis:
Let Truth Be Told



One cannot be heartless to celebrate the killings disfiguring Plateau State. But that cannot be a reason to bury the truth. I may sound offensive to the guilty ones, while to some fair minded I may sound objective in my analysis. Whichever way, I remain committed to objectivity from my understanding of the situation disfiguring Plateau State which was from a long time plan.

Till this moment throughout my sojourn on planet earth, I never came across a set of people that hate to be developed by others like those so called indigenes of Plateau State languishing in abject poverty, frustrated, confused but deceived by their so called tribal, religious and community leaders to believing fiction, while those so called leaders are swimming in opulence and the state burns.

In political times, if you desire their votes, tell the indigenes what they want to hear. Tell them you will flush out Muslims in their midst. Tell them you will support the killings of Fulani, and their votes are for you without doubt!

“I am a son of the soil, you are a settler” this is what usually comes out from the mouths of the natives of Plateau State when discussing with tagged settlers, particularly Hausa/Fulani Muslims not to Igbos, Itsekiris, Ijaws, Uhorbos, Ikwerres, Efiks, Anangs, Yorubas etc but those whose great grand, grandparents labored through tin ore and columbite mining activities, arts/crafts, animals husbandry and trading to build the state when the so called indigenous natives were in caves until the arrival of White Missionaries to smoke and ‘forced’ Christianity on them for ‘salvation’.
But to the same Plateau natives, those minority tribes in Manchok, Zangon Kataf, Kagoro, Kafanchan, Gonin Gora etc of neighboring Kaduna State or Sayawa and Jhar natives from Bogoro in Bauchi State are not settlers on the Plateau but brothers. In fact, those ‘brothers’ enjoyed better respect and recognition from some of the past governments than the so called settlers despite their economic contributions to the sustenance of the state overtime.

Jos North hosting Plateau State capital is no more in the news as those hoodlums and their blood thirsty sponsors who severally unleashed mayhem on the once beautiful and peaceful tin city hiding under the guise of land grabbing, ethnicity and religion, were forced to retrieve back after the exit of their demi-god and his remnants from power.
Until the likes of one self-appointed prophet who is a replica of Paul Gunen Gindiri, Isa El-Buba who migrated from Gwoza hill in Borno to Jos preaching hate and violence on the Plateau are cleared from the scene, peace may continue to elude the troubled Plateau. The likes of El-Buba working with ignorant tribal folks, believe they have the monopoly of violence to frustrate the Hausa/Fulani Muslims out of Plateau. That mirage of ethno-religious cleansing can only be feasible after the return of Prophet Yisa (Jesus) to mother earth.

That El-Buba and like minds should better wake up from their day dream and embrace the reality to have their peace if they so cherish. But to flush out the Hausa/Fulani Muslims from Plateau State, is an impossible task to undertake. Take my words to the Bank!

They attempted bouncing back few years back but the commendable efforts for return of peace put-in-place by former Governor Simon Bako Lalong discouraged and shattered their plans. That is now part of history as fragile peace has returned to Jos city.

To those of us that have an inkling of what actually ignited the crisis from the beginning with some Muslims tagged as settlers while some addressed as Indigenous Muslims, we are not surprise that another round of the killings has erupted in Plateau State. It was Joshua Dariye who introduced the Indigenous Muslim Theory targeted at frustrating Muslims.

We all know the primary intention of the crisis that will remain an illusion till eternity because it can never be realized, and no matter the strategy applied by any of the warring factions and whosoever presides over the state government cannot achieve the hidden evil intention.
Fortunately, most of those who planned the execution of the cleansing are no more as they died frustrated and disappointed bigots and left the ugly situation their people are battling to executive today.

Those dead war mongers were pretenders who misinterpreted the words of God in the Holy Bible. They erroneously believed that Christianity is all about dressing gorgeously on the Sabbath Day and rushing to the Church to sing, clap and dance or reading the Holy Bible as worshipping God. Christianity is more than their imaginations.
The religion of Islam recognizes and respects Christianity. It recognizes and respects real Christians not the violent type masquerading on the Plateau. What Plateau has, are mostly Pagans and Atheist forcefully converted to Christianity overnight. Their religious behaviors and understanding of Christianity are at variance with the teachings and actions of Jesus Christ. That is the bitter truth!

If one may eventually ask, who has the capacity and courage to stop the ongoing killings on the Plateau? Who are those fanning the embers of hatred between Muslims and Christians and for what reason? Who started what looked like an ethnic cleansing exercise on the Plateau and discriminating theories? Who fired the first shot against the other? Were those responsible for past acts of murders, arrested and prosecuted or were set free by the powers that be? Does Plateau State need peace or is comfortable with the security challenges it faces? Is the State Government ready to do the needful no matter whose ox may be gored for ever lasting peace? These are few questions that continue to beg for answers.

The ongoing grisly and despicable killings in Mangu, Barikin Ladi, Bokkos and Riyom added to the massacre of over 500 Berom natives in Dogo Nahauwa a suburb of Jos on Sunday, March 7, 2010, the massacre of several innocent Hausa/Fulani in Kuru and Yelwan Shendam and those along the federal highway that passes through Berom communities, the gruesome murder of Gen. Alkali at Dura-Du by suspected Berom terrorists, and the murder of 23 innocent commuters at Rukuba road in Jos by suspected Irigwe militia group and the killing of 25 innocent souls at Zangam Yelwa. Then the recent massacre of over 155 innocent souls on December 23, 2023 in 23 villages and communities with over 122 houses razed down in Barikin Ladi and Bokkos local government areas are few references for this discourse.

We are not talking of the attempted ethnic cleansing that took place in the various local governments in the state under the watch of Jonah Jang by suspected tribal terrorists allegedly supported by governments of the past.

The crisis rocking the foundation of unity and cohesion in Plateau state seems to have reached a point of catastrophe and beyond immediate solution. The state is paying dearly in all fronts. One wonders how the state turned into such lawlessness that evil now holds sway with impunity. Definitely, there had been an absence of sincere government in place all along.

Plateau State crisis dates back to the administration of Joshua Chibi Dariye (1999-2007) the ‘proud’ recipient of the medal of pardoned criminal. Insecurity was one of the recurring ugly decimals that marked and de-branded that administration at all fronts.

Jonah Jang administration that came on board after the exit of Dariye, was even worse as it appeared to have enjoyed the spate of killings.

So the All Progressives Congress (APC) after birth, latched on Jang’s lapses and weaknesses for a better peaceful state.
The blood thirsty monster that turned our nation state into the killing fields of the African Continent courtesy of several factors including; terrorism, ethno-religious sentiment, the restless rage of armed robbery, banditry and kidnapping for ransom has not relented. Instead it has bared its fangs worse than ever before in our history.

At the slightest strike, accusing fingers point to members of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN). But, the association has consistently denied any complicity in the attacks, warning that they should not always be linked to all attacks in the state, there are bitter lessons to learn from the series of killings over the years. The ones that have engulfed Plateau State since 2001 paint a parlous portrait of a country where citizens’ lives mean little or nothing to those who swore by their Holy Books to protect and defend lives and property without fear or favor.

For how long are we going to tolerate the crass absurdity of unmitigated murders in our country? Indeed, my continued outrage at the recurring bestial blood -letting on the Plateau since 2001 is predicated on the apparent impotence on the part of both the federal and state governments through the security agencies to rein in the monster of the orgy of violence.

As events have proved not much has been achieved by those on the corridors of power to stem the tide of the bloodbath on the Plateau and other places. On August 29, 2011, 20 innocent persons were murdered at Kabong, a suburb of Jos and their bodies mutilated and eaten by the beasts in human skin addressing themselves as Christians. Muslims had to celebrate their Eid-el-Fitr festival indoors. Yet, the worst case scenario was to follow later.
According to reports, some suspected herders went on rampage in Heipang near Jos on Sunday, September 4. 2011. By the time they were through, the family of one Chollom Gyang, including his wife Hannatu, six children and a four month old baby were dispatched to their ancestors. And in a subsequent sweeping strike by suspected Berom terrorists, a Fulani family of eight and a visitor were, hacked to hideous death at Foron village in Barikin Ladi local government area on Friday, September, 9, 2011. It was the fourth of such beastly attacks in Plateau state within just a week!

If that was more than a decade ago, what do we make of the approaching 2024, with regards to the safety of the people on the Plateau? As if the destructions of farmlands by suspected armed herders and cattle rustling by suspected natives and destruction of properties by ethno-religious jingoists were not enough and as if re-enacting a midnight horror film as the 10th Anniversary of the past tragedy, some assailants attacked, Tafi Gana village on August 17, 2021. There they descended on their victims’ and posted them to their ancestors. And in another attack at Dong village, gunmen murdered residents.
At the sleepy village of Dawan, Ganawuri Chiefdom in Riyom local government area, in broad daylight, former Minister for Sports in the Obasanjo administration, Damishi Tonson Sango was severally attacked and one of his police orderlies murdered by suspected natives of neighboring community.
Similarly, on Wednesday, August 18, 2021 there was an attack by unknown gunmen on an Irigwe community with five persons killed while four others were missing despite an imposed curfew on Bassa.
should act on promptly without politicizing them. And with that in place, it would be easier for them to identify and mop up hundreds of thousands of small arms and ammunition hidden all over the country by prospective trouble shooters most especially in Plateau, southern Kaduna and Tafawa Balewa axis in Bauchi State.
Besides, we should also do away with the persisting culture of impunity. The government should stop slapping perpetrators of evil with amnesty programs that insult the intelligence of their helpless victims. As Arewa Consultative Forum highlighted, this is the time to deal decisively with killers; to pay for their crimes against humanity instead of being cajoled by the powers that be. Only that would serve as a form of deterrence to others with similar evil inclinations.
Governor Caleb Mutfwang in the embattled Plateau State should not allow himself to be caught napping or his thoughts for a better and peaceful state beclouded by ethno-religious sentiments as was the case with some of his predecessors who sustained what we are witnessing today.

There are several devilishly claimed religious leaders parading the streets of Plateau that should be arrested and prosecuted for misusing the pulpit and podiums to fan the embers of hatred. One of such clowns known through his actions and preaching claims to be a Prophet while hiding his past antecedents needs public exposure by relevant security agencies.

A discreet investigation may expose his past as a disciple of the late devil, Muhammadu Marwa Maitatsine and now as a stationed disaster on Plateau State that should be seriously monitored and possibly disconnected from preaching a religion he is misinterpreting.
He lost access to power after the defeat of his master’s sponsored gubernatorial candidate in 2015. He has been lost midstream since then but so desperate to breach the peace for recognition and return of business as usual. Injustice breeds violence that should be the watch word of any responsible government in Plateau State.

There was justice in Plateau State by successive governments as all were treated equally before the peace was disrupted by area boys and vagabonds in power. Late Police Commissioner Joseph Deshi Gomwalk, Chief Solomon Daushep Lar, Fidelis Nanmi’apTapgun and Simon Bako Lalong were good and straight forward leaders who governed Plateau State with respect to all.

Simon Bako Lalong did his best for the return of lost glory but the blood thirsty beasts on the Plateau were not comfortable with his style of carrying all along. Typical Plateau indigene sees the APC as a Hausa/Fulani Muslim dominated party not for them. The 2023 voting pattern in the presidential election says it all!
Lalong resisted and ignored their advances and never for once subscribed to their evil plans of Christianizing the state until he exited power peacefully. Now, there is Barr Caleb Mutfwang is a real Christian running helter-skelter to bailout the state from the past unfortunate incidences. But the crisis seems to have returned in full swing.

The devils are back to the trench thirsty for human blood to quench their eight-year thirst. But with Governor Caleb applying the right prescribed balm with courage, the wounds may heal within a short period. If not, one has to pity the once peaceful and progressing state loved by all as the bastion of tourism and hospitality.

Finally, for the truth, you cannot kill my own unjustifiably and still expect yours to live in peaceful no matter the societal status you enjoy. It is a tit for a tat game. A stitch in time saves nine!

I Come in Peace!

Shared as copied.