• Says OPSH’s mediation meetings with warring factions have brought peace

• Appeals to Gov El-Rufai to assist victims in hospitals, displaced

A peace advocacy group in Southern Kaduna has thanked President Muhamadu Buhari, the Chief of Defence Staff and the service chiefs for deployment of Special Forces to the area following the crisis that have seen many killed, displaced and property worth several millions of Naira destroyed in the area.

The group under the aegis of Southern Kaduna Peace Practitioners, SOKIPEP, also expressed gratitude to Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) the internal security military outfit in the area for holding mediation talks between warring factions, saying the development had restored peace and harmony among locals.

The board and management of the group, in a statement, Sunday, appealed to the Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to as a matter of urgency intervene in the plight of the victims by not only paying for their hospital bills but also sending relief materials as well as shelters for the displaced.

The organisation in the statement, signed by its National Coordinator, Rev. Dauda Fadia, said the action of the President and the Armed Forces of Nigeria in sending special forces to the crisis area and the various meetings with stakeholders, indicate that they have listening ears and desire peace in southern Kaduna.

SOKIPEP said it was particularly grateful to Operation Safe Haven which it noted, went further in its efforts at restoring peace by engaging warring factions in peace talks, a development it said, had brought peace and harmony among locals.

Describing the OPSH’s action as “impressive”, the group, in the statement titled:” We are impressed with the Military Operation in Southern Kaduna “,insisted that the peace that once eluded us in the area is returning.

The full statement read:”We, the entire Board, Management and Volunteers of Southern Kaduna Peace Practitioners (SOKIPEP) wish to strongly commend President Muhammadu Buhari, the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief Of Army Staff and the Commander Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) for the deployment of Special Forces to reinforce the security agencies in Southern Kaduna in response to the cry of Nigerians.

“This goes to show that they are not bias and are sensitive to the plight of our people. We commend them for their tireless efforts in seeing that Southern Kaduna is peaceful and life returning back to normal.

“This effort, within this short period, had paid off. We are seeing results worthy of commendation.”

“If efforts of this nature were initiated towards all the previous crises in our area in the past, we don’t think we would have had any recurrence.”

” We strongly commend them, and as an organization, we will continue to support them.
” Our position is a reflection of incontrovertible facts on ground in the entire chiefdoms and villages we visited in Jema’a, Zango Kataf, Kaura and Sanga local governments during our peace appraisal tour.

” The villagers now have confidence in the military because of their friendly posture and quick response to threats which was a sharp departure from the past.

“We are very very happy that our people are now beginning to go back to their farms and normal business. They now live without fear of attacks, because the military men are strategically positioned in the hinterlands, forests and unimaginable places, where the attackers normally used to attack us.

” We want to particularly laud the the efforts of the Commander of Operation Safe Haven, the special military task force in charge of 4 local government areas in Southern Kaduna, for the several kinetic and non kinetic methods he is using to restore peace in the zone.

“We strongly believe this is among others is the main reason why peace has to a large extent returned to our area. We are impressed with the commitment of the Commander and his men towards restoring peace and ensuring security in the area.

“This has no doubt, strengthened the confidence of the people and laid a good foundation for lasting peace and security in Southern Kaduna.

” We are pleased with him and his officers and men, especially his Sector Commander In Southern Kaduna, for his quick response and professionalism in discharging his duty. He is always at every point within minutes of call. This is not what we used to see in the past.

“We also want to further thank the OPSH officers and men for providing security in most of the displaced villages. With this development, our people have started returning to their communities, even communities that have been displaced for more than a year, have now returned to their homes. This, to us, is a giant stride in the peace efforts.

“Finally, we wish to strongly appeal to the Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to use his fatherly heart and come to the aid of some of our people and our Fulani brothers who are injured and are in various hospitals without any form of assistance. This will go a along way in promoting forgiveness and reconciliation.

We appeal to all groups in Southern Kaduna, including our clergy brothers to stop inciting the people by making unverifiable and inflammatory statements.

” As men of God of different faiths, we must preach peace and pursue same at all times.”

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S/Kaduna: SOKIPEP Appreciates Buhari, Military Over Deployment of Special Forces