Peace In Jos DIsrupted As Killings And Arson Escalate Around Dutse Uku, Rikkos
The Oasis Reporters
May 26, 2018
Reports of violent breakdown of law and order has been received from the Plateau State capital, Jos in North Central Nigeria as an unspecified number of people have been killed, many injured and houses set on fire
Commenting on the incident, the Plateau State Police Public Relations Officer Mr Mathias Terna Tyopev, said that security men have been drafted to the scene to arrest the situation.
He said: “We have received reports of tension around Dutse Uku, Rikkos, Cele Bridge and we have mobilised our personnel to the area.
“As we speak, the Area Commander, Jos Metropolis is there on ground.”
Rising tension had been noticed in the area since last week when a boy from Angwan Miango was said to have been found dead at the boundary between the community and neighbouring Rikkos, a community of predominantly Hausa natives in the metropolis. Security agents waded into the issue and calmed the situation.
But on Sunday morning, another boy from the same Angwan Miango was allegedly killed when he went to wash at Cele River, a stream that runs between the Angwan Miango and Rikkos community.
Angered by the spate of killings, the natives from Angwan Miango took a fight to their Hausa neighbours in Rikkos.
This degenerated into full blown mayhem with gunshots rending the air and houses set ablaze.
Some churches, on getting wind of the crisis, had to hurry and wind up their services in order to allow worshippers get to their homes, according to a Guardian newspaper report.
Police patrols have heightened in a bid to calm the crisis and restore normalcy.
Unease has often pervaded relationships between the indigenous Plateau people who are largely Christians and the growing Muslim communities who are mostly viewed as settlers, with internecine killings observed in most parts of the state. Attempts to broker peace have only held for short periods of time before further outbreaks over the years, to the disappointment of investors and the political leadership in the state.
Additional reporting : Guardian
