IN continuation of the genocide against the people of Southern Kaduna, about 30 people were allegedly killed in Ungwan Wkakili community in Zango Kataf Local Council of the state recently. In one incident, terrorists killed 17 persons, including a policeman, and injured others. This was followed by another attack less than a week later in which more than 10 people were killed in the same area while others escaped with grievous injuries. Many were hospitalised after sustaining various degrees of injury. It is difficult to have a week pass by without wanton bloodshed in the area. Last year, the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) alleged that within six years, 148 communities of the Southern Kaduna people were attacked by terrorists and 200,000 natives displaced.
Speaking with newsmen on the latest incident, the chairman of Zangon Kataf Local Government Council, Mr. Francis Zimbo, wondered why the mobile police checkpoints in the affected communities were withdrawn before the attack, giving the attackers opportunity to carry out their nefarious activities without challenge. Happily, in his own reaction to the incident, President Muhammadu Buhari demanded the swift arrest and prosecution of the culprits. He said: “There is a concerted attack on innocent citizens in the state and the security and law enforcement agencies must take serious action to put an end to this.” And that, precisely, is the issue. For far too long, the area has witnessed so much bloodshed with no visible sign of reprieve. Yet these needless killings must stop if the Nigerian State wishes to assert its authority over the area, and given that peace is a prerequisite for economic growth and development. But if the killings are to stop, all major stakeholders in Southern Kaduna and indeed Kaduna State as a whole must resolve to respect the sanctity of human life and restore normalcy and sanity.
In August 2020, looking at the drawbacks of the strained relationship between the state government and the people of the area, we called on Governor Nasir el-Rufai to work on his relationship with the leaders of the Southern Kaduna people. We also called on the latter to work with the governor to resolve the lingering crisis. Speaking during an interview, the governor had vowed not to ‘appease’ certain leaders of the troubled area whom he alleged were intent on blackmailing him for pecuniary gain. His words: “I have no time for nonsense. I will not appease criminals. I will not appease idle people who have nothing to do but to raise a spectre of genocide. They do that to get money into their bank accounts and get donations from abroad. Anyone that is moderate, anyone that is promoting peaceful co-existence between various ethnic groups, is considered a sellout. And with a governor like me who does not appease them, because they are used to being appeased, they cause trouble. They organise these killings and then their leaders are invited by the governor; they wine and dine and they are given brown envelopes. That’s what they have been doing for 20 years.” The governor’s declaration came after SOKAPU described the killings in the area as an act of genocide aimed at taking over ancestral lands.
If developments since then are any indication, El-Rufai and the Southern Kaduna leaders are still working at cross purposes. That is clearly not good for the state. Still, because security of life and property is the raison d’etre of the state, it is apposite to ask where the CCTV cameras and other security architecture that the governor promised to deploy to checkmate the wanton bloodshed in the area and across the state really are. Why are people still being killed like flies without any culprits being apprehended? Are the CCTV cameras no longer working or is it that the state government simply does not care about the massive loss of lives in the state? The reports of killings seem to be unending.
It seems that the Federal Government, with the Kaduna State government in tow, has decided to leave the people at the mercy of bandits and other killers who have turned them to easy prey. Just how could killings be going on under a sovereign government for years without the government doing anything to stop the massacre and give the people respite? In particular, it has to be said that the Kaduna State government bears specific responsibility for not showing the kind of concern and alarm about the killing of its own people that could have attracted national and international attention and the diligent and positive intervention of the Federal Government. As things stand, it is difficult to see how the Kaduna State government could justify its superintendence over Southern Kaduna while allowing the area to be overtaken and pockmarked by incessant killings.
These unending killings represent a sad commentary on both the Federal Government and the Kaduna State government. They are in charge of governance, yet are unable to stop the massacre. They are the reason the law has not taken its course on the culprits who have consistently murdered sleep in the area. Unless they act fast, the wanton bloodshed will be a permanent stain on their records. They must shake off their slumber and act before it is too late.
