THE JOS PALM SUNDAY KILLINGS 

On Sunday, the 29^th day of March, some gunmen stormed a gathering in Angwa Rukuba village in the neighborhood of University of Jos, Plateau State killing about 30 defenseless citizens and injuring scores of others. And in a swift reaction, the University of Jos postponed its exams scheduled for Monday and Tuesday while the Plateau State governor Caleb Manasseh Muftwang declared a 48-hour curfew.  The state governor strongly condemned the unprovoked attack on innocent citizens and assured the public that necessary measures were being taken to apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

In the same vein, the presidency responded to the incident. In his reaction, through Bayo Onanuga, the media aide, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu condemned the killings in Jos and similar attack in Kahir village in Kagarko LGA of Kaduna State, describing the attacks as an affront to Nigeria. According to the president, “Anyone who will sneak under the cover of the night and kill defenseless citizens as done in Jos and Kahir village, is a heartless coward.

In another development an American missionary and humanitarian, who leads the group known as Building Zion, Alex Barbir, has expressed outrage at what is now known as the Jos Palm Sunday Massacre, criticizing President Tinubu over his nonchalant attitude to the killings of Nigerian hapless citizens. In a viral video now circulating widely on X, Barbir condemned what he called the continued persecution of Christians in parts of Nigeria, accusing the Federal Government of repeated inaction. 

  When will these senseless killings stop? There seems to be no respite in sight. Killing and bloodletting have become commonplace in Nigeria. The tragic incident comes less than two weeks after about 23 people were killed and more than 100 injured in a series of suspected suicide attacks in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, and reinforced the insecurity affecting many parts of Nigeria. Does it surprise anybody that last month Nigeria was declared one of the worst insecure place on earth, in the same class with Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and war-torn Syria? And do we still need anyone to argue that Nigeria is not “a country of particular concern” as designated by Donald Trump of America? Nigerian government and its agents are living in self-denial. Tinubu would rather spend $9 million tax-payers’ funds to lobby to cover up stories that are in public domain than face reality. Is not scandalous that after spending trillions annually on defense what Nigerians receive in return is insecurity and bloodbath?

Hajia Hadiza Mohammed,  

London, UK