Press Release

13th January, 2020

Following the January 8th, 2020 wanton killing of vibrant young men in Kulben village of Kombun District, Mangu Local Government Area, LGA, of Plateau State, Plateau Heritage Movement with a profound sense of grief and anguish commiserates with the Mishkaham Mwaghavul, Mishkaham Kombun, the Mwaghavul nation and the government and people of Mangu LGA and Plateau State.

As citizens and indigenous people of Plateau State we feel the pain and suffering of our people caused by the mindless killings we are compelled to witness. The most recent slaughter of innocents in Kulben is an indicator to the reality that the possibility of peace and security in our State is indeed an illusion far removed from human contemplation.

While we mourn, our thoughts and prayers are with the immediate families of our slain brothers, and indeed all innocent people circumstantially caught up in the unfortunate web of violence. As we look to persevere in the face of provocation, we call on our people to be inventive in self defense and efficient in community policing, to complement the effort of government.

As a movement committed to the projection and protection of the heritage of our people, we commend the government of Plateau State and applaud Governor Simon Bako Lalong for the urgency in his response to the condition of our people in Kulben. At the same time, we urge him to do more in being genuinely concerned for the pain, suffering, security, and wellbeing of our people.

At a time people across the country are fashioning ways and methods to guarantee their own safety and security years after we had ”Operation Rainbow” for the same reason, we seem to have lost focus in this regard under the present administration. The fate of Operation Rainbow and its rendering to one of government’s abandoned projects is a moral burden Governor Simon Bako Lalong must bear if the situation is allowed to continue.

With Operation Rainbow, we may have been able to learn how to protect ourselves better, and with that knowledge avert some of these killings, or at least, make sound decisions during neighborhood watches that would not expose our communities to danger.

As we look to the future with hope, we will continue to pray ceaselessly for a day to come very soon, when Operation Rainbow will regain full operational status under the Lalong governorship, and after that, add to the commendable work of Vigilante Group of Nigeria, VGN, and law enforcement agencies of government.

Until that day, may God help us to save ourselves from the schemes of evil men.

~Mangna Yusuf Wamyil
Convener, Plateau Heritage Movement

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Plateau Heritage Movement Mourn Victims of Kulben, Mangu LGA Attacks