THE KILLING OF INNOCENT TRAVELERS IN JOS

Nigerians woke up on Saturday last week with the bad news of gruesome murder of innocent travellers returning from annual national Zikr in Bauchi. They were intercepted along Rukuba, Gada-Biyu axis of Jos-North local government by suspected Irigwe ethnic militias who killed them and burned their buses. The atrocity should be condemned by every peace-loving Nigerian. The killing of these innocent travellers came at a time when Plateau State which was epicenter of ethno-religious crisis has started enjoying relative peace courtesy of Governor Simon Bako Lalong’s commitment to bring lasting peace to the state. The militias who carefully selected their victims have a hidden or ulterior motives. Some of their reasons are to set the state on fire and fuel retaliation across the country. The victims came from other states of the country and only on transit. What did they do?

Even before the unfortunate killings, there have been reported cases of how innocent travellers are being killed in some roads which are considered no go areas for certain faith. If this crude way of life displayed by the mobs can be adopted in other states, one imagines the dire consequences it will bring to the peace, unity and development of the country. I learnt that some suspects have been apprehended by the Nigeria army. This is a good development. However, the problem is not whether the perpetrators of the heinous crime are arrested or not. The question remains, are the culprits going to face justice according to the laws of the land? So long as government continues to temper justice with mercy on those who commit grave offense against humanity, we should rule out any possible end to the unnecessary carnage.

Ibrahim Mustapha, Pambegua, Kaduna State