Sociopolitical groups visit Southern Kaduna over incessant killings
Following the incessant killings in Southern Kaduna, leaders of various sociopolitical groups in the country are set to pay a solidarity visit to the people of Southern Kaduna today and demand an end to incessant killings in the area.
The groups include Afenifere, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), and Middle Belt Forum.
Daily Times gathered that this action was spurred by the statements made by Arewa Consultative Forum and a former Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makarfi over the now deteriorated state of security in the state.
Southern Kaduna, a predominantly Christian-dominated area in Kaduna State, has witnessed the continuous killing of natives in recent times.
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The security crisis in the area has generated outrage by several people and human rights groups across the country, with many calling on the state Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, to end the killings.
The Presidency had recently stated that the attacks were reprisal ones, a comment that received a huge backlash from several people and groups in the country.
The latest incidents took place on Wednesday and Thursday wherein 21 persons were reportedly killed by bandits.
Confirming the killings, the Kaduna State Police Command said the bandits attacked Apyia’Shyim, A’Piako, Atak’Mawei, and Kibori, all in Atyap Chiefdom of Zangon Kataf Local Government Area of the state.
However, contrary to the police figure, the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union claimed that 33 persons were killed in the attacks.
To empathise with the people of Kaduna, leaders of the various socio-cultural groups in the country said they would visit the area today.
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The spokesperson for PANDEF, Mr Ken Robinson, in an interview with one of our correspondents, said the forum and other groups such as Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndigbo felt compelled to identify with the Southern Kaduna people in their trying times.
“We felt that we should empathise with the people of Southern Kaduna, where several people have been killed and properties destroyed by suspected Fulani herdsmen and bandits,” he said.
In the meantime, a member of the House of Representatives from Zangon Kataf/Jaba Federal Constituency in Kaduna State, Mr Amos Magaji, has accused the Federal Government and the Kaduna State Government of failing to respond to the alarm raised by lawmakers from Southern Kaduna over imminent attacks on the communities.
