April 28, (THEWILL) – The Executive Chairman of Langtang North Local Government Council, Plateau State, Hon. Ubandoma Joshua Laven, has put the blame of the recent killings in Kanam on Governor Simon Lalong for failing to act on intelligence reports.
Just over a fortnight ago, over 150 people were killed, with close to 5,000 others displaced by bandits when they attacked eight communities in Kanam local government area in the central zone of the State.
According to Ubandoma, if the state government had responded promptly to intelligence reports, the Kanam carnage would have been averted, but the governor failed to make use of local intelligence reports at his disposal.
He said there are always local intelligence reports from the security agencies, vigilante groups, members of the Community Police and the community leaders, prior to most of these deadly attacks.
Ubandoma revealed this during a chat with newsmen to dissociate himself from a video circulating on social media to the effect that he has sworn to stop a particular ethnic group from coming to campaign in Tarok land, ahead of the 2023 general elections in the state.
He said “the responsibility of every government is to protect lives and property. In August last year, I raised alarm over terrorists camping somewhere in Wase LGA, which is neighboring Langtang North LGA. Four months later, the Emir of Wase, His Royal Highness, Muhammad Haruna, confirmed that 50 percent of Wase LGA has been taken over by terrorists.”
Ubandoma said further that the state government is not proactive in handling security issues, noting that instead of inviting him to ask where he got the information from, they chose to go to the Media to debunk his claims.
“The state government cares only when it has happened. The government is supposed to be proactive to prevent attacks on innocent people. In my own case, when I discovered that the terrorists have invaded our land, I worked in collaboration with the local security and they confirmed it”, he stated further.
“Always, there are security reports about the activities of terrorists in the state. For Yelwa Zangam, where 29 persons were killed, there were security intelligence reports for more than three days, but no action was taken to avert the danger and eventual destruction of lives”, Ubandoma pointed out.
“There were also intelligence reports about the attack in Mangu, and the next is Langtang North. So, I called all the traditional rulers, security heads in Langtang North, and the local hunters group to a security meeting, where we mapped out strategies and alerted our people. That was what prevented what would have been a bloodbath in Tarok land in August 2021”, he disclosed.
Laven further said his proactiveness averted the looming danger that the terrorists were planning in the area.
“Four months after Wase was hit, it is now the turn of Kanam LGA where over 150 people were killed. This is because we don’t take local intelligence reports seriously. We need to rise and protect our people”, he urged all those in positions of authority.
Harping more on the video in circulation, in which he is accused of inciting a particular ethnic group against another, Ubandoma said it was because of his love for peace that he recovered over 1,000 firearms in Langtang North LGA, and handed them over to Governor Lalong and the Commander of Operation Save Haven to ensure lasting peace in the area.
“If I can recover over 1,000 weapons and the Governor and the Military come here and receive them, it shows my love for peace. Now they are creating tension in my community because that video was created and translated by mischief makers”, he concluded.
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