25th September, 2023
By Polycarp Auta
The Coalition of Fulbe Professionals in Africa (COFPIA), has appealed to its members not to take laws into their hands over the alleged murder of a herdsman, Malam Adamu Gabdo, in a rural settlement around Mangu Local Government Area in Plateau.
The group made the appeal while assuring its members that security operatives are working to arrest the killers of the herdsman, in a statement by its National President, Malam Mohammed Tilde, issued on Sunday in Jos.
COFPIA described the murder of the herdsman as barbaric and saddening.
It noted that Gabdo recently returned to the community after peace-building efforts initiated by security agencies led to relative peace in the area before he was brutally murdered.
It described the incident as a setback for peace in the area.
”COFPIA is saddened by the gruesome killing of one of its members. We condemn the incident in the strongest possible terms.
“The deceased recently returned to the community after several peace-building efforts initiated by security agencies, especially Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), leading to relative peace in the area.
“The incident is a setback back to the peace already achieved in the locality,” he said.
Tilde, however, commended the personnel of OPSH for their prompt response aimed at tracking down the perpetrators of the heinous act.
”As difficult as it is, we are consoled by the steps initiated by security agencies, especially OPSH, to track down the perpetrators whose intention was to cause ethnic tension in the state.
“Given the zeal of the security agencies coupled with reports from our Mangu chapter, we are satisfied that the criminals will be brought to book in no distant time,” he said
He appealed to its members in Nigeria to remain calm and law-abiding, adding that security agencies were doing everything possible to arrest the criminals.
“Nobody should take the law into his or her hands; the incident was perpetrated by some few criminal elements in the locality who were not acting on behalf of the community as a whole.
“We must view this action as simply a crime that should have no place in our society.
”We kindly appeal to our kinsmen to forgive and work closely with the security agencies to unravel the true identity of the criminals involved,” he appealed.
(NAN)