Secret Killings Persist in Jos

The spate of secret killings in the restive city of Jos, Plateau State continued yesterday with the discovery of the corpse of city resident Adamu Haruna Abubakar, who was abducted by unknown persons last Friday. Adamu was last seen when  he left their house to attend Juma’at prayers. His corpse was found by family members yesterday at the Plateau Hospital mortuary. Adamu was 25 years old and unmarried.

Hajiya Khadija, who is an official of Jama’atu Nasril Islam and chairperson of Hausa Fulani Muslim Women Peace Forum in Plateau State, said the killing of Adamu was part of the ongoing secret killings in some parts of Jos North.

She said at the Jamaatu Nasril Islam office in Jos that they have so far recorded 23 people killed and another 58 people missing between March 8 and 21, excluding the people who were injured due to the secret attacks in different parts of Jos North alone. Secret killings have been going on in Jos since soldiers intervened to stop the crises of January 17-19, she said.

Hajiya Khadija faulted the relaxation of curfew by the state government, saying peace is yet to return to the state. She blamed the deployment of policemen to replace soldiers in many parts of the state as responsible for the escalation of the secret killings.

The chairperson also said “the most unfortunate thing is that no arrest has been made in respect of the secret killings despite the fact that sometimes it was the security operatives who will inform us to go and evacuate the corpse in some places.”

Police Public Relations officer ASP Mohammed Lerama advised the relatives of Adamu to lodge a formal complaint to the Police over the incident for proper investigation in order to bring the perpetrators to book. On the secret killings, Lerama said, “we don’t have the data of the secret killings but Police are aware of the secret killings in the town that was the reason why the state Police commissioner Mr Ikechukwu Aduba summoned religious and community leaders to discuss over the incident today, Wednesday, in order to appeal to their communities to avoid vengeance and reprisal attacks so that peace will return to Jos.”

Also speaking, Assistant Director of Army Public Relations Lieutenant Colonel Galadima Shekari said he didn’t have access to the data on the secret killings until commanders in the field supply them.