BCDC VANGUARD CALLS FOR ARREST OF FULANI LEADERS OVER CLAIMS MADE DURING RECENT NEWS CONFERENCE

BCDC VANGUARD CALLS FOR ARREST OF FULANI LEADERS OVER CLAIMS MADE DURING RECENT NEWS CONFERENCE

By: Bodunrin Kayode

The Bokkos Cultural Development Council (BCDC) Vanguard has demanded for the immediate arrest, interrogation and prosecution of leaders and members of the Plateau State chapter of the Coalition of Fulani Registered Organizations (COFRO).

The chair of the vanguard Farmasum Fuddang through a signed statement said today that the recent news conference by some renegade fulani portrayed their brutal community as victims of the ongoing violence against residents on the Plateau.

BCDC Vanguard finds the statements made by the group to be provocative, inciting, diversionary, and deeply insulting to the true victims, whose mass graves are scattered throughout the State.

“This rhetoric reveals the actual perpetrators of the violence—identified Fulani terrorists—who have claimed more than 10,000 of our members over the past 15 years.

“This history of violence has often been misattributed to ‘unknown gunmen’ by genocide deniers, politicians, and conspirators trying to obscure the truth.

“The statement made by the group through its Chairman, Garba Abdullahi Muhammad, during a widely reported press briefing in Kaduna on April 8th, claims that Fulani herders in Plateau State are victims of “continuous aggression,” “injustice,” “criminality,” and “bias.”

“The statement implicates joint security task forces, whose officers have also fallen victim to Fulani militancy, including during the recent mass invasion of five Bokkos villages that resulted in the massacre of over 50 locals on April 2nd. It further demands the unconditional release of all arrested and detained suspects.

“BCDC Vanguard observes that such declarations often accompany mass killings attributed to Fulani militancy, exerting unnecessary pressure on security agencies to release all suspects, including those with confessions.

“A notable case is Jibrin Musa Goje, who confessed in a taped interview to leading the massacre of over 300 Christians during attacks on 36 villages in the 2023 Christmas season. Despite being arrested and presented to the media, Goje and other suspects were released without trial, despite strong incriminating evidence.

” The release of Mr. Goje and many other suspects poses an ongoing threat to both survivors and security operatives involved in their arrest. We assert that the persistent attacks in Bokkos, Bassa, and Mangu have involved the active participation of previously arrested Fulani militants, threatening not just non-Fulani residents but also the broader Fulani community that opposes their violent agenda.

“The demands by the so-called Coalition of Fulani Registered Organizations (COFRO) for the release of “all” suspects seem to indicate a calculated plan to perpetuate these threats and maintain a climate of terror in our villages.

“This exposes the true identity of the terrorists and their financiers, revealing their intentions to undermine the sovereignty of the Nigerian State.

“We urge the DSS, Police, Army, and all law enforcement agencies to regard this statement as a crucial lead toward identifying and dismantling the perpetrators behind the ongoing violence and to ensure the safety of innocent citizens.”

Thw chairman Fuddang had Amb. Duwam Bosco as secretary with seven other members including: “Machief Ayuba Barrs. Charles Amagong,John Apollos Maton Nantok Dashuwar, Cornelius Makopson, Austin Kamshak and Daniel Malgit Agandu”.

BCDC VANGUARD CALLS FOR ARREST OF FULANI LEADERS OVER CLAIMS MADE DURING RECENT NEWS CONFERENCE