Police communal clash committee begins sitting in Jos

The Nationwide committee on communal clashes, comprising of the six Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) drawn from the six geo-political zones of the country today visited Jos to interface and interact with members of communities that have been bedevilled by communal clashes. The committee included AIG’s Christopher Dega, Mohamed Jinjiri Abubakar, Adeola Adeleke Adeniyi, […]

The Nationwide committee on communal clashes, comprising of the six Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) drawn from the six geo-political zones of the country today visited Jos to interface and interact with members of communities that have been bedevilled by communal clashes.

The committee included AIG’s Christopher Dega, Mohamed Jinjiri Abubakar, Adeola Adeleke Adeniyi, Felix Osita Uyanna, Yahaya Garba Ardo, Mbu Joseph Mbu and CP Rasheed Akintunde. 

The committee chairman, AIG Christopher Dega in charge of Zone 8 Lokoja said the aim of the committee is to identify areas where communal clashes are happening and try to make necessary efforts towards solving such clashes.

Dega explained that some of the duties of the committee is to conduct mediation meetings with aggrieved parties with a bid to peacefully resolve the causes of the clashes.

He said the committee would also conduct investigations and conduct assessments of the extent of communal clashes within the country and make recommendation to the Inspector-General of Police on the role of the Nigeria Police in providing security and public safety in troubled areas.

Justice Hussaini Othman (rtd), an elder from Wase LGA, said the major cause of communal clash in Wase was the issue of land dispute stressing that no farmer will be comfortable if his land is taken over by his neighbours.

Justice Othman said Tarok people have taken over an area of Wase land used by farmers and have refused to give it back.

He said, “there was a time the issue was settled that they will leave the area but they said they have developed the area and so needed compensation. The authority then paid them compensation so that they will leave but up till now they have not left. So tell me how a Wase farmer will leave without his farmland. Is he going to eat the Wase rock?”

“Politics is also a major issue so I urge the police to be liberal and not take sides. Allow people to meet the voters, allow the voters to vote freely. If this is done, things will be ok and no more communal clash,” he said.

Also speaking at the occasion, Youth leader of Langtang North Manasseh Nimkur identified religion, land dispute and politics as causes of communal clashes in Plateau. 

Earlier, the Plateau State Commissioner of Police, Nasiru Oki said the inspector general of the Police Suleiman Abba was committed to ending communal clashes in the country. 

Oki said to demonstrate his seriousness; the IG had recently inaugurated a committee on communal clashes, prevention and management.