The Plateau Massacres and Government’s double standards

Newsie Events Media:

24 hours after the unfortunate and gruesome murder of about 25 persons in Plateau states, many things have happened:

The Presidency has issued a press release.

The Police has arrested about 20 suspects. Is God not wonderful ? Infact, I heard that security agencies quickly responded by showing up at the affected area which helped averted further casualties.

The Inspector General has even deployed an elite Intervention force to conduct an on the spot assessment.

While this is commendable, it raises some pertinent questions:

  1. Where was the Presidency when about 80 persons were massacred in a community in Plateau last week ? We did not hear a single word when hundreds of persons were massacred and their villages burnt to the ground in the same Plateau. Did they suddenly wake up from slumber ?
  2. Months after these gory invasion of communities in plateau take place, all we hear from the Police is an empty assurance of being on top of the situation. No single arrests has been made. Under 24 hours we saw them arrest about 20 suspects of this particular attack. Is it that the police have suddenly became good at their jobs ? I can’t remember when last the Police has acted so swiftly. Is it that the victims of this particular attack are more important than the 80 persons killed last week or the hundreds buried in mass graves within the same period ? Is the police being selectively active and over zealous ?
  3. The way security agencies mobilized after this tragic event showed that they actually have capacity to mobilize in response to violence but where were they last week ? Is it that they made a new week resolution to become effective all of a sudden ?
  4. The Inspector General of Police has never sent an elite Intervention force to go and conduct an on the spot assessment. What changed ?

The swift response by the authorities have once again opened up fresh wounds in the minds of Nigeria who have been recipients of the second fiddle treatment by the authorities. It’s been a long while since Nigerians saw the authorities act this way in response to a crime. The theory of a “complicit and overly one sided” authorities cannot be dismissed. By their actions, they have shown that what is good for the goose is not good for the gander. They have shown that the dead of a particular group are more important than the dead of another group. The consistent pattern of responding when one group is involved and ignoring when another group is affected makes this claim plausible.

The mindless murderers who had got plateau state on the news again were motivated by the fact that law and Justice never takes it course in this country. Anyone who have been silent on the carnage in plateau only to suddenly find his or her voice over this one should be ashamed.

The perpetrators of the last and the last and the one before the last and the one before the last two were never brought to book. Why are you surprised that reprisals are happening ? This isn’t a quarter of what has happened in the past in the same Plateau state. Why is this one so special ?

I want justice. I want justice for the 25 persons killed yesterday not more than I want justice for the 80 persons killed last week. I want to see perpetrators of this attack arrested same way I want to see the perpetrators of the invasion that led to the death of hundreds in the same Plateau arrested.

Justice is not justice unless it is done for all. Until this happens, we will be running around circles and may never solve the problem.

©️Caleb Onyeabor

Disclaimer: This article is entirely the opinion of the writer and does not represent the views of NEWSIEEVENTS.

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