The entire Editorial Board of Daylight Reporters is appalled by the gutless, mindless and insensitive killing of over 200 Nigerians and the injuring of many others on the eve of Christmas. Our thoughts are with the government and people of Plateau state in particular, and Nigerians in general for this heinous crime against largely defenseless people preparing for Christmas. This carnage returns to the front burner, Nigeria’s volatile security situation, especially in the Plateau in particular, and several other locations all over Nigeria. This latest round of murderous bloodletting in over 25 settlements of Bokkos and Barkin Ladi LGAs of Plateau state, is particularly heartbreaking because it has the signature of a premeditation, seeing that it was targeted at Christians, known to put their guard down as they enter the mood of celebration.
The killings become even more starkly irresponsible when you consider the central message of Christmas, a yearly ritual to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, whose banner it is said is love, compassion, peace and charity. Yet, this is not the first time religious adherents will be targeted, harangued and murdered in cold blood by heartless killers, many of whom have been emboldened by the failure of security agencies to round them up, and bring them to book as the mindless, insanely, and cowardly killers they are.
For over 2 decades, killings in Plateau state have been greeted by an unchanged rhetoric by our security agencies who always vow to end the carnage. They are always on top of the situation and all perpetrators will be brought to book. Yet, not only has it subsisted for over 2 decades, the scale has expanded beyond imagination. The line of perpetrators continue to increase as a result of high level inertia and the lack of political will on the path of our leaders to deploy adequate soft and hard approaches toward ending the madness. It is mind boggling that state actors could organise such an expansively coordinated attack without our security forces picking up any chatter. This is a very nauseating indictment on our intelligence gathering.
Notwithstanding, the fact that killings and counter killings have been almost routine, portraying the picture of a vicious circle of insensitive killings and knee jerk reprisals that continue to renew hostilities among residents of the state, it is heartbreaking to hear that most killings of this wholesome nature are carried out by mercenaries with no emotional attachment to the communities hence the ruthlessness observed from this and past attacks.
If there is any iota of truth about the above, then the situation is more precarious than many Nigerians are thinking. Without transacting in rumour mongering, The mere thought that mercenaries, probably from outside Nigeria can be contracted, imported and coordinated to execute such a dastardly act does not only leave chills on our collective spines, it exposes a deeper level of insecurity than our leaders are letting on.
Without promoting fear which is the currency of these gutless killers, it has become imperative, that Nigerians are not shielded from the real nature of insecurity bedeviling the nation as this may help them to put to raise their security awareness in anticipation of the worst. But where, warnings about possible attacks come not from security agencies, as in this case and in many places in Nigeria, the people may not be able to do much by way of mitigating the attacks.
However, supposing the people were even certain that the attacks will happen on the date and time contained in their intel, it still leaves us with the problem of how to defend themselves. With eye witness reports indicating that the assailants attacked the communities with heavy machine guns, the people’s security awareness becomes completely useless seeing as the lacked the same firepower to match their assailants.
In this respect, therefore, security agencies who are well aware of the miasmatic nature of insecurity situation the Plateau state, and have been armed with actionable intel ought to have, in addition to changing the security threat in the area, be very generous with information, where there is, to enable the people to, in collaboration with their agents, provide the people with some of sort of a fighting chance against these evil elements. This collective response must be headlined by action. Security forces ought to be seen to be moving resources to match the threat level to assure the people of ample security. Sadly, this was not done, resulting in this loss.
Not to defend our security agencies, but it must be said that may not be particularly possible to police every stretch of Nigerians largely troubled lands considering the expanding nature of insecurity and the inadequacy of both boots and technology in our nation’s ever changing war against insecurity.
The failure resulting from this inadequacy, as we have seen, is the daily loss of lives and properties in a scale that continues to expand beyond the boundaries of our anger and collective bewilderment. Perhaps, our minds have been numbed by the daily reports of killings all over Nigeria that we no longer react with the anger that such situations deserve. It will appear the dead are simply allowed to bury their dead and move on as their neighbours helplessly await their own turn to shoulder grief, tears and blood. If it is communities in Katsina or Zamfara that are being attacked and people either killed or kidnapped for ransome, it will be Police officers or other security agents that are killed in Imo, Abia or other states of Southeast or other forms of killings everywhere else.
It is devastating to hear survivors refer to the security situation in the Plateau as helpless, effectively making a carriccature of the so called security efforts in the state. Whereas we do not intend to join in advancing such a narrative, it is not out of order to call to question any security approach that does not secure people and their properties. So, we join the people of Nigeria to ask – what good is any security effort that does not eventually lead to improved security? It is certainly painful that Nigerians continue to be lost to inadequate insecurity as our already wide circle of insecurity, continues to expand amidst tears, blood and resigned grief.
Enough is enough! It is time to move past the rather stale rhetoric of being on top of the situation and working to bring perpetrators to book to actually getting on top of the situation and really bringing perpetrators to the book. The vast majority of Nigerian land is fast becoming an expanse of ungovernable spaces and are beginning to wonder if this book is not already shredded, or that those expected to bring perpetrators to book have become grossly incompetent. Either way, it is time to start doing the real job of security. Nigerians have lost too many loved ones and properties that to expect to lose more will most insensitive. Nigerians have been browbeaten, bloodied and rendered hapless by activities of mindless killers that they are no longer interested in any talk of security without actual security.
We at Daylight Reporters are therefore, joining our voices with those of other well meaning Nigerians to call for a complete overhaul of our security approach as it is, and begin to think of better, more innovative ways to protecting our people. Clearly, the old system has failed to deliver the goods, therefore, to continue to keep faith with it amounts to what Einstein referred to as madness – doing the same thing over and over again, yet expecting a different result.