Governor faces impeachment over Jos killings

PIQUED by the spate of killings and arson in Plateau State, the state House of Assembly on Friday gave Governor Simon Lalong a two-week ultimatum to address the insecurity in the state.

It was gathered that stakeholders and the traumatized populace are mounting a lot of pressure on the lawmakers to move against the governor over his perceived pro-Fulani stance. 

The legislators also asked President Muhammadu Buhari to prove to Nigerians that he is not tribalistic by condemning the serial killing of their kith and kin the same way he has condemned the recent killing of some Fulani travellers in Jos. Addressing newsmen in Jos on Friday, the chairman of the House Committee on Information, Honourable Dadun Peter Philip, said the Assembly was calling on the people to stand up and defend themselves and their communities since conventional security designs could no longer guarantee their safety. 

Text of the statement reads: “On behalf of the Plateau State House of Assembly, I wish to sympathise with the government and people of Plateau State on the barbaric and dastardly killings that have been taking place in different communities of Bassa, Barkin Ladi, Bokkos, Jos North, Jos South, Mangu, Riyom, University of Jos community and recently that of Yelwa Zangam. The House condemns all these killings in totality. All these killings are unacceptable and condemnable. We commiserate with the families of all those who lost their loved ones during these attacks. 

“We commend the youths on the Plateau for the sustained coordinated and organised campaigns against the killings and as well the courage to make it go viral by sending strong messages to the world using the dead bodies of the mayhem on the social media and the streets of Jos. The display of the corpses in the House is a sign that they recognised the authority of the House of Assembly as an institution that can speak for the people. We greatly appreciate that action. 

“As an assembly with people at heart, we call on Plateau State citizens to have confidence in us with renewed commitment as we have given two (2) weeks to the governor to take action on the resolutions the House has forwarded on security matters and how to restore peace. 

“We strongly call on Plateau people to stand up and defend themselves and their communities, as the conventional security design is no longer guaranteeing our safety as a people. 

“We call on the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong, to come up with a statement defending us as a people and to bring back renewed commitment to the cause of Plateau. 

“We are still expecting with high hopes, the president to also come up with a statement about the killings in Yelwa Zangam just as he did in the killings of travellers along Rukuba Road and to also indicate a sign of justice or we will see him as being reflexive about the conflict in Plateau. 

“As an assembly committed to the yearnings and aspirations of our people, we deeply appreciate the calls made by Plateau people, both at home and in the Diaspora, for encouragement and tasking us to do the needful in order to save Plateau and its heritage. 

“We also wish to put on record that we stand with Plateau people in this trying moment and assure them of our genuine commitment to the cause of Plateau State. 

“We also call on the traditional rulers to look inwards and release the local security design to protect Plateau people as well as reinforce the vigilante, hunters and local wise men to defend our people. 

“As a sign of commitment to this urgent need for the people to protect themselves, the Plateau State House of Assembly has directed all local government chairmen to suspend their planned recruitment of ad hoc staff and instead recruit 200 vigilante personnel in each local government area to boost and argument local intelligence gathering. 

“The security operatives are called upon to fish out the perpetrators of the mayhem and be punished according to the law.” 

Some of the lawmakers who spoke with newsmen after the conference confirmed the pressures they were facing from their constituents who accused them of joining the governor to abandon them amid insecurity. None of them wanted to be quoted. However, one of them said the decision to commence or not to commence impeachment proceedings against the governor would depend on how he responds to the two week ultimatum the Assembly gave him.

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