TheNewsGuru

Tag: Taraba

  • Breaking: Police arrest, parade vicious, notorious Benue armed gang [Photos]

    Breaking: Police arrest, parade vicious, notorious Benue armed gang [Photos]

    The Nigerian Police Force (NPF) have arrested and paraded vicious and notorious suspects responsible for selling and supply of AK47 rifles and other firearms and ammunition to armed bandits, militias and criminal herdsmen/farmers in Benue and Taraba states.

    TheNewsGuru reports the major breakthrough in the arrest of the notorious gang of dealers in prohibited firearms and ammunition in Benue and Taraba states was made known on Tuesday when the suspects were paraded at the Benue State Police Command Headquarters.

    The Police paraded one 36 years old Morris Ashwe, an illegal firearms Dealer, who is said to be a native of Mbajima Village of Katsina Ala LGA of Benue State, reportedly working for one Terwase Akwaza aka Ghana.

    Morris Ashwe, 36
    Morris Ashwe, 36

    Recovered from Morris were five (5) AK47 Rifles, two hundred and thirty eight (238) rounds of AK47 ammunition, forty (40) smoke grenade canisters and seventy-nine (79) LAR rifle ammunition.

    Arms and ammunition
    Recovered arms and ammunition

    Also arrested and paraded are illegal firearms dealers: Kabiru Idris, 43 years, a principal suspect, who was arrested in Takum town, Taraba state; Miracle Emmanuel, also a principal suspect and gang leader, 27 years native of Anambra state, and Husseini Safiyanu, a native of Taraba state, who is also a principal suspect.

    Suspects and recovered arms on parade
    Suspects and recovered arms on parade
    Recovered ammunition and smoke grenade canisters
    Recovered ammunition and smoke grenade canisters

    Recovered from the suspects were five (5) AK47 rifles, thirteen (13) AK47 magazines, eighty three (83) rounds of AK47 ammunition and two (2) Beretta Pistols.

    Police parade suspects
    Police parade suspects

    The NPF also arrested and paraded Emmanuel Ushehemba Kwembe, 28 years native of Ushongo LGA; Sekad Uver, 28 years native of Koshisha LGA; Ordure Fada, 22 years native of Kwande LGA, and Stephen Jirgba, 18 years native of Vande kya LGA, all in Benue State; and who are said to be kidnappers/armed robbers.

    Suspects on parade
    Suspects on parade

    The Police also arrested and paraded Peter Lorham, 24 years native of Kinshisha; Achir Gabriel, 30 years native of Ushongo, and Lorhemen Akwambe, 35 years native of Guma, alleged to be kidnappers/armed robbers.

    Smoke grenade canisters recovered from suspects
    Smoke grenade canisters recovered from suspects

    “The renewed strategies adopted by the NPF to stop the incessant killings of innocent Nigerians and curtail the proliferation of firearms across the country, most especially in the North-Central States have been yielding positive results,” the Police said in a statement.

    TheNewsGuru reports the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IGP IRT) and the Police Special Forces mandated by the IGP to work with Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba State Commands, in the last two weeks, arrested the 11 suspects mentioned within Benue and Taraba States and recovered from them the 10 AK47 rifles and the other assorted firearms and ammunition.

    The suspects confessed to have been responsible for supply of AK47 rifles and other firearms and ammunition to armed bandits, militias, and criminal herdsmen/farmers in Benue and Taraba States.

    Morris confessed and admitted to have been supplying firearms and ammunition to the notorious and most wanted vicious and notorious gang leader of militia, murderers and kidnappers Terwase Akwaza aka Ghana.

    “Terwase Akwaza aka Ghana was declared wanted by the NPF for the merciless killings of several innocent persons and wanton destruction of properties worth millions of Naira, at Zaki Biam in Benue State on 20/3/2017 and for other violent crimes,” the Police said.

    The Police revealed that the suspected kidnappers were arrested in the act of movement to kidnap a prominent person in Makurdi Benue State.

    “The arrest was made possible from intelligence gathered by the IGP Intelligence Response Team,” the Police stated.

    The suspects confessed to have been responsible for several kidnappings in Benue, Taraba and some part of Nasarawa State in the recent past.

    According to the Police, “Investigation is being strengthened to arrest other suspects at large. All suspects will be arraigned in court on completion of investigation”.

    “The deployment of additional Fifteen (15) Police mobile Force units to augment the strength of the Benue State Police Command has beefed-up security in the State and help in sustaining the peace that have been restored to the state,” the Police said.

    The Force assured the people of Benue and other contiguous state of its commitment to sustain the peace that has been restored in those states.

     

     

  • Offa robbery: IG deploys three mobile force units to Kwara, Taraba

    The Inspector-General of Police( (IG), Ibrahim Idris, has ordered the deployment of three units of Police Mobile Force ( PMF), high powered police investigation team and Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) to Kwara.

    The Force spokesman, ACP Jimoh Moshood, in a statement in Abuja on Sunday, said anti-robbery equipment and 10 crew members were also deployed to the state.

    Moshood said three additional PMF units were also deployed to Taraba to prevent further attacks in Donga and Bali Local Government Areas by gunmen.

    Recall that armed robbers attacked five commercial banks in Offa, Kwara on April 5, during which 17 persons, including policemen and a pregnant woman died.

    He said that the units which had arrived kwara would cover Offa and its environs as well as other vulnerable points in the state.

    The spokesman added that the police teams would carry out intelligence gathering and raids on identified criminal and other flash points in the states.

    He said that the team deployed to Kwara, working in synergy with the State Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department in the state had arrested eight suspects connected with the bank robbery.

    The force spokesman said the unit deployed to Taraba would cover Donga, Bali, Lau, Gassol, Karim Lamido Local Government Areas and other flash points in the state.

    Moshood said that the team had also arrested 12 suspects directly responsible for the recent killings in Donga and Bali Local Government Areas.

    He said that items recovered from the suspects were: seven AK 47 rifles, four locally made revolver pistols and 30 rounds of AK 47 ammunition.

    Others were seven operational vehicles used by the armed robbers and assailants in the two incidents.

    Moshood called on the residents of the states to be calm, support the police and promptly report suspicious acts or persons to the nearest police detachment or station for prompt action.

     

     

  • Again, herdsmen invade Taraba community, kill five

    Again, herdsmen invade Taraba community, kill five

    Tragedy struck again on Thursday in Taraba State as armed herdsmen invade Donga Local Government Area of the state killing five people.

    The Thursday’s attack came less than 12 hours after armed herdsmen attacked and wiped out a family of four in neighbouring Takum, the hometown of a former Minister of Defence, Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, in the state.

    An eyewitness, Mr. Henry Ianna, told our correspondent on the phone that the attackers, numbering over 30, invaded Utile community along Donga-Isha Road, and killed five persons.

    “The attackers came in the early hours of today (Thursday) when people were still asleep and started shooting.

    “The attacks have now spread to Shaakaa village and so far; five corpses have been recovered and the attacks are still ongoing as we speak.

    “The casualty figure may rise as shooting are still going on. The areas under attack are still volatile, so we could not go into other places for fear of being attacked and you know the attacks began in the night when people were still asleep; so, there is a tendency that more bodies would be recovered,” he said.

    Ianna added that hundreds of people were fleeing the troubled spots to Donga, the headquarters of the local government for safety.

    The Chairman of Donga Local Government Area, Nashuka Ipeyen, confirmed the attack.

    When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, David Missal said he was yet to be briefed on the attacks but promised to get back to our correspondent, but had not done so as of the time of filing this report.

    These renewed attacks in Taraba are happening despite the presence of Army personnel who are in the state on Operation Ayem Akpatuma to recover illegal arms and stem the incessant herdsmen and farmer’s clashes.

    Recall that two weeks ago, Danjuma had, during the maiden convocation of the Taraba State University, accused the Armed Forces of colluding with the armed herdsmen to kill Nigerians, urging the people to rise up and defend themselves.

     

  • Taraba Killings: Army extends ‘Operation Cat Race’ by two months

    The Army has extended the Exercise Ayem Akpatuma in Taraba by two months to rid the state of militants and other criminal elements.

    The army Spokesman, Brig.-Gen Texas Chukwu explained in a statement on Monday in Abuja, that the extension became necessary to further consolidate on the gains achieved so far in the state.

    Chukwu also said it was being extended in the state due to calls by well-meaning Nigerians.

    The army launched the exercise otherwise known as “Cat Race’’ in six states, Benue, Taraba, Kaduna, Niger, Masseuses and Kogi in February to tackle herdsmen/farmers clashes and other forms of criminality.

    It was earlier scheduled to be concluded in the six states by March 31.

    Chukwu called on Taraba people to cooperate with the troops by giving useful and timely information to enable them carry out their duties effectively.

    He said the exercise had recorded tremendous successes in other areas in spite of challenges.

  • Killings: Again, Taraba Govt blasts FG, Military, says ‘We’ve lost confidence in you’

    The Taraba State Government on Friday reiterated losing confidence in the Federal Government’s security apparatus in the state, particularly the military to curtail the recent killings by Fulani herdsmen in the state.

    The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Bala Abu in an interview with The Punch said that the state had not regained its confidence in the military in the state.

    Recall that the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, had through his Spokesman, Col. Tukur Gusau said on Monday that Nigerians had been coming to report soldiers, who were accused of misconduct.

    He said that such soldiers were undergoing disciplinary procedures, but stated that there was no complaint from Taraba.

    But the state government on Tuesday said that the Federal Government was aware of security threats and soldiers’ misconduct in the state.

    In the statement made available to newsmen, the state government cited instances where the Federal Government was informed about the security breach and soldiers’ misconduct.

    In their separate reactions on Tuesday, the Ministry of Defence and the Nigerian Army insisted that they had not received any letter from the Taraba State Government.

    When contacted on Friday, the media aide to the state governor insisted that the state had lost confidence in the military in Taraba.

    Abu stated, “As of now, the state is relatively at peace. Even with the relative peace in Taraba, we do not have confidence in the military that is there. We have lost confidence in the military and we have not regained it.

    “We do not have confidence in the Federal Government’s security apparatus in Taraba. People are being disarmed. They are discriminatory in the way they are doing it. They invade people’s homes to seize machetes and kitchen knives and leave Fulani herdsmen that go about with AK 47.”

    Abu had earlier said that the state Governor, Darius Isaku, had in a letter, dated January 30, 2018, to the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), complained about the attitude of the Commanding Officer of 93 Battalion, Takum, Lt. Col. Ibrahim Gambari.

    He alleged that soldiers always looked the other way when the herdsmen militia killed people.

    It was gathered on Friday that the state government in the last one year had written at least eight letters to the Federal Government on security threats and soldiers’ misconduct in the state.

    It was learnt that the governor had on May 15, 2017, in a letter to the Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Tukur Buratai, raised the alarm about criminal elements in parts of Donga and Bali local government areas.

    Findings also showed that the governor in a February 14, 2017 letter, written to the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, called for the establishment of a mobile police squadron in Takum.

    It was also gathered that the governor on August 11, 2017, wrote the Office of the National Security Adviser complaining about the conduct of the commanding officer in Takum.

    It was learnt that only the NSA and the vice-president replied the letters to them, out of the eight written to the Federal Government.

    A source stated, “The killings are not being done by the Fulani we know. They are being carried out by the Fulani militias, who were being sponsored by the elite.”

  • FG, Military and Herdsmen attack: our side of the story – Taraba Gov

    FG, Military and Herdsmen attack: our side of the story – Taraba Gov

    The Taraba State Government on Tuesday came out with their side of the story in the raging controversy that followed the call by former chief of army staff, General TY Danjuma on Nigerians to defend themselves against the rampaging herdsmen.

    General Danjuma accused the military of having an unholy alliance with the herdsmen.

    Darius Ishaku, the Taraba state governor, while reacting to Nigerian Army statement absolving itself of blame in the conflicts, insisted that the Federal Government and the Nigerian military were duly informed of impending dangers that led to the wanton destruction of lives and properties in the state recently.

    This governor’s position was revealed in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Darius Ishaku on Media and Publicity, Mr. Bala Abu. Abu in the letter cited few instances that the Federal Government and the military were informed about security breach and soldiers’ misconduct, which were allegedly ignored.

    The state government’s statement was in reaction to the claim made by the Federal Government on Monday that although it got reports of soldiers’ misconduct, there was none from Taraba State.

    Col. Tukur Gusau, the spokesperson for the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali, who spoke in an interview with The Punch had alleged that while the military received distress messages from other states, none came from Taraba. In his words: “Nigerians have been coming to report incidents and we have been taking care of them… Soldiers have been put through disciplinary procedures.

    “We have not received anything yet from Taraba State. We need to work on specific things. To my knowledge, we didn’t receive anything in respect of our operations in Taraba State.”

    But the Taraba State Government, in its reaction, warned that thousands of people might still be killed by herdsmen unless the military turned a new leaf.

    It said, “The case against the military in Taraba is that of outright collusion against the people which has made it easy for the Fulani militia to kill and destroy property. It is also a case of disrespect for the Office of the Governor of Taraba State.”

    Abu in the statement explained that in February 2016, the Ministry of Interior influenced the visit of military investigators to investigate an allegation against a monarch in the state, Dr. Shekarau Masa-Ibi.

    He stated that the military delegation “had no courtesy to inform the state governor” on the visit and purpose of the visit

    “The Taraba State Government protested this obvious act of disrespect… in a letter to the Chief of Army Staff, dated February 23, 2016,” he added.

    Abu noted that the state Governor, Darius Ishaku, also wrote the President on January 26, 2016, to complain about threat to peace and security in Taraba State.

    “In that letter signed by Governor Ishaku himself, he lamented the devastating effects of internal conflicts involving the Fulani and Tiv, which led to the sacking of 200 settlements in the Gassol, Bali, Ibi, Donga and Gashaka local government areas by herdsmen.

    “The governor informed the presidency about the concerns raised by some traditional rulers in the state concerning the influx of Fulani militia and about the attacks on their communities. Letters of complaints from the traditional rulers whose communities suffered from these attacks were also attached and forwarded to the presidency… Copies of this letter were sent to the National Security Adviser, Chief of Staff to the President and the Inspector-General of Police,” he added.

    According to Abu, Ishaku wrote another letter to the then Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, on July 5, 2017, drawing his attention to “the precarious security situation as contained in a letter written by contractors handling the Kashimbilla Dam project and called for high level intervention. He called on the army, the Navy and Air Force to establish permanent security bases in the area. This was again ignored.”

    The Taraba State Government said it reported the misconduct of the Commanding Officer of 93 Battallion, Ada Barracks in Takum on several occasions, but no action was taken against him by the military.

    “For example, the Fulani militia attacked communities in Takum and Ussa on May 6, 2017. The crisis led to the abandonment of 224 cattle belonging to the Fulani herdsmen.

    “The Taraba State Government took possession of these cows and handed them over to the Commanding Officer for safe keeping until the owners return to collect. This was meant to be a ploy to get the perpetrators of the crisis arrested. Sadly, the Commanding Officer released the cows without arresting anybody.

    “There was another case when the commanding officer marched soldiers to attack and brutalise communities in Kashimbilla. Property of the people was damaged while many were injured.

    “The letter said the Commanding Officer was partial and discriminatory in the discharge of his duties and requested that he should be transferred. The advice was ignored,” the statement said.

    The governor’s spokesman said Ishaku had always raised the alarm on security situations in the state, but was always ignored.

    He said, “On January 30, this year, The governor wrote another letter to the Vice President to again complain about the attitude of the Commanding Officer of 93 Battalion, Takum, Lt. Col. Ibrahim Gambari, whose soldiers always looked the other way when the herdsmen militia come to kill.

    “The governor said the security situation in the country and in Taraba State demanded that every security officer cooperate and take directives from the chief security officer of the state which is the governor, but lamented that this has not been the case with the commanding officer.

    “The letter listed instances of security challenges in which the military failed to live up to expectations.

    “The letter also alerted the military authorities to a planned massive movement of Fulani and their cows into Takum LGA, adding that motive was to provoke the people and precipitate crisis. The military in-charge of security in the area did nothing.

    “The widely publicised report on social media and which was investigated and confirmed to the effect that a chopper dropped arms in a village near Wukari was downplayed by the security agencies.

    “Despite efforts by the Taraba State Government to get the military to act, they never did. Since then, the arms and ammunition brought into the state have been used against the people in various communities in the state by the herdsmen.

    “The present Operation Ayem Akpatuma in the state has also been discriminatory. While cutlasses and knives have been taken away from the people, the herdsmen have been left with AK-47 rifles.

    “Through these various acts of deliberate mischief on the part of the military thousands of people have been killed and a lot more may be killed unless the military turns a new leaf.”

     

  • Taraba CAN chairman dies in auto-crash

    Rev. Ben Ubeh, the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Taraba, died on Sunday in an auto accident on the Zing-Yola Road.

    The Vice Chairman of CAN in the state, John Aina, confirmed the incident in Jalingo.

    Ubeh , who died in the early hours of Sunday, was on his way to Yola for an official engagement.

    Rev. Peter Gambo, who was travelling with the late chairman, told newsmen that the incident happened when they parked to buy some drugs in Zing town on their way to Yola.

    Gambo, who is the state Chairman of the NLC, explained that the deceased also stepped out of the vehicle at Zing.

    “We parked to buy drugs, the CAN Chairman too came out and stood at the back of our Toyota Hilux van when suddenly a truck came from behind and crushed him.

    “I am still in shock over the incident, but I have come to terms with the fact that God knows best,” he said.

    Gambo said Gov. Darius Ishaku immediately sent a delegation to Zing which helped him to evacuate the corpse to Jalingo.

    The corpse had since been deposited in the morgue of the State Specialist Hospital, Jalingo.

    Ubeh, who was elected CAN Chairman in Taraba in 2016, is also the General Overseer of Army of God Glorious Ministries.

    Gambo added that burial arrangements would be announced later.

     

  • Video: Military collaborating with armed bandits to kill Nigerians – TY Danjuma

    …urges Nigerians to defend selves against killers

    A former Minister of Defense, Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (retd.), on Saturday, accused the Nigerian military of collaborating with armed to kill innocent Nigerians.

    Danjuma revealed this while speaking at the maiden convocation of the Taraba State University, Jalingo, Taraba State.

     

    “The military are helping the herdsmen to kill Nigerians. They cannot stop the killings because they are in agreement with them. If you wait for the military to stop these killings we will all die,” Danjuma said, urging Nigerians to defend themselves against the killers.

    Speaking further, Danjuma said: “I am not a politician and politics is one profession I don’t want to belong to because if I am a politician, I would not say what I am going to say to you now.

    “When I arrived this arena, I saw rich cultural display, and I was amazed at the rich cultural heritage of our people. Taraba is a mini Nigeria with diverse ethnic groups living together peacefully, but the peace in this state is under assault.

    “There is an attempt at ethnic cleansing in the state and of course, some rural states in Nigeria.

    “We must resist it. We must stop it. Every one of us must rise up.”

    Details soon…

  • Buhari’s visit to Taraba: ‘Merely a roadshow to score cheap political points’ says PDP

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said a recent statement made by President Muhammadu Buhari during a visit to Taraba state, where he compared the number of deaths through killings in affected states, was not only morbid but ill-thought.

    It also said the president’s planned visits to states affected by bloodletting and violence was an after-thought and not altruistic.

    The president, on Monday visited Taraba state to condole with those affected by recent violence caused by herdsmen/farmers clashes.

    In Taraba, Mr. Buhari hit the nerves of many critics when he said the number of persons killed in violent clashes in Mambilla Plateau, Sardauna Local Government Area of Taraba State, was more than ”those killed in Zamfara and Benue states combined”.

    The PDP said the ”ill-thought remark” has vindicated its position that the scheduled trips to states ”where Nigerians are being killed by marauders is cosmetic and a political afterthought that did not come from Mr. Buhari’s heart”.

    The party in a statement on Tuesday by its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, expressed disbelief at the president’s dismissal of public criticism over his delay in visiting the troubled areas.

    “Nigerians wondered why President Buhari did not put figures to the tally since what appears to be of interest is the morbid comparison of how many Nigerians were killed from state to state.

    ”The party is however not surprised by President Buhari’s comments as well as the failure to visit the victims to directly assure them as the APC-controlled Federal Government had always exhibited thoughtless disdain towards the feelings and well being of the masses.

    “When well-meaning Nigerians said the visits were cosmetic and a political gambit, some apologists of the APC dismissed it as a mere political statement. Now, the action and comments by the President during his whistle stop visit to Taraba state have bared it all.”

    The party also flayed the president for ”not directly visiting the families affected” during his visit to Taraba.

    “Not only that our dear President holed himself in the comfort of the Taraba State Government House for a brief meeting with few government officials, he did not visit the victims to directly commiserate and allay their fears with assurances of steps to ensure justice and end the carnage, as his allusions almost re-opened old wounds.

    “Is it not surprising that the same president who, last Saturday, had all the time at a wedding ceremony in Kano state did not even spare a minute to visit victims of a carnage where a soothing word from him would have been the balm for justice and peace?

    “Furthermore, the President’s declaration that Nigerians should not expect him to “always go out to the field” not only negates his promise to lead from the fronts, but also shows that he has become distant from the real feelings, demands and sensibilities of the people.

    “Also, Nigerians were shocked by the President’s claims of having performed in providing security in the country, even in the face of the daily bloodletting in the land. Perhaps, he was not aware, as usual, that while he was in Taraba, marauders were having a field day slaughtering women and children in neighboring Benue state.

    ”It is clear to all that this Presidential roadshow serves no purpose to the people, but merely designed as a gambit to score cheap political point and falsely portray the administration as caring, particularly seeing that the 2019 election is around the corner.”

  • Herdsmen/farmers clashes: Why I didn’t rush to Taraba, Benue, other troubled states – Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari on explained why he didn’t rush to some troubled states despite the criticisms.

    The president reiterated that he has his way of monitoring developments instead of “rushing” to crises spots and “making noise”.

    Buhari spoke in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, during his visit to assess the situation in the state and condole with victims of violence.

    No fewer than 200 people are believed to have been killed in communal disputes, herders/farmers clashes and others in the state.

    Many of the dead were buried in mass graves. Many are injured and hospitalised. Others have been forced out of their homes.

    The local government areas worst- hit by the herdsmen/farmers crisis are: Lau, Ibi, Gassol, Bali, Wukari, Takum and Sardauna where scores were killed in renewed violence at the weekend.

    Leaders of the violence-hit communities were at the Government House yesterday to meet with the President, who urged all Nigerians to embrace peace and live together in harmony so that “there could be meaningful development and not destruction”.

    “I am here (Taraba) to meet with the leadership of the state, to offer my condolences to those who lost loved ones and properties in violence.

    “People, sometimes expect me to rush out to the fields, to go and make noise.

    “But I have my ways of gathering intelligence. I get to know what is happening across the country without necessarily going to those areas.

    “I will be going to Benue and Zamfara after I return from Ghana to also condole with the people,” Buhari said.

    He urged traditional rulers in the state to step up activities in their various chiefdoms to foster peaceful coexistence among their subjects and to remain vigilant at all times.

    The President was accompanied by Minister of Women Affairs Hajia Aisha Alhassan , Minister of Defence Manir Dan Ali; Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed, some Service Chiefs and National Assembly members from the state.

    The delegation was received by Governor Darius Ishaku and state’s lawmakers, led by the speaker.

    President Buhari said he chose to visit Taraba first, before Benue and Zamfara states, adding that there were more killings in Taraba, Benue and Zamfara states.

    Ishaku said the state was delighted to welcome the President in its trying time.

    The governor noted that Taraba State was a “mini Nigeria”, with its over 80 ethnic groups and three religions to handle. “It is not easy to always balance things up here.”

    Ishaku said the state was contending with a different breed of herdsmen who are militias moving around with AK 47 rifles to remove anything in their way, unlike the known herdsmen who had cohabited with the people for decades without skirmishes.

    “The problem is never between the locals. The local Fulani and other tribes blend without issues.

    “We have a new breed and specie of herdsmen militias who move around with sophisticated weapons; they are poised to remove anything in their track.

    “They must be arrested now before it degenerates to something we can not contend with,” Ishaku said.

    Opinion leaders from the warring ethnic groups insisted that justice and fairness must be seen to be taking their course and the rule of law allowed to prevail for peace to return.

    The President is also expected to visit Yoe State where 110 girls were kidnapped on February 19 and Rivers State where many people were killed in New Year’s Day attack perpetrated by the late Don Wayne.

    In a statement, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity Femi Adesina said the President had urged the Armed Forces and other security agencies to compile comprehensive reports on the various incidents.

    “Having received and studied the reports, the President has decided to undertake an on the spot assessment of the various occurrences and to meet and console the communities affected.

    Adesina said: “From today, March 5, he will visit Taraba, and subsequently Benue, Yobe, Zamfara and Rivers states.

    “President Buhari has been receiving daily briefings, and has been in constant touch with the governors, and has been updated with situation reports.”

    The President has also called on all Nigerians, especially those in the affected areas, to cooperate fully with the security agencies to enable them curb the spate of crimes, bring those responsible to justice and prevent furthe