From Muhammad Ibrahim & Femi Oyelola, Kaduna
One person was feared killed yesterday in a faceoff between soldiers and the youths in Kafanchan, Kaduna state.
Following that skirmish, the state government has imposed 24-hour curfew on Kafanchan town and environs in Jema’a local government area to curtail escalation of the crisis.
Reports from the area showed that there was breakdown of law and order in the town when some youths attempted to invade a military facility to lynch suspected Fulani men who were said to have been arrested in Jaba local government area.
The Fulani were alleged to have been nabbed at a checkpoint mounted by soldiers, on their way from Katsina to Keffi in Nasarawa state for hunting.
According to the information gathered, the Fulani hunters were arrested with various arms found in their possession and they were immediately moved to the Southern Kaduna Military base in Kafanchan.
On getting information about the arrest of the hunters and where they were being kept, some youths Kafanchan allegedly mobilized to attack the military base with a view to getting at the Fulanis.
But they were said to have met with stiff resistance from the soldiers on guard who fired warning shots to deter them.
The youths, according to reports, were not deterred by the gunshots as they moved towards the detention facility and even tried to disarm the soldiers but were shot at directly.
The clash, sources said, left one of the youths dead with several others wounded. The wounded ones were said to be receiving medical attention at Kafanchan General Hospital, as at press time yesterday.
Reacting to the development, Kaduna state governor, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, called on residents of Kafanchan and environs to remain calm and be law abiding just as he assured them that government would do all within its powers to sustain peace in the entire state.
A statement signed by the Director General, Media and Publicity to the governor, Ahmed Maiyaki, further called on the people to desist from taking laws into their hands.
Yero said security operatives have intensified surveillance to foil any attempt by miscreants and criminals to attack innocent citizens in the area.
Governor Yero called on the entire people of Kaduna State to remain calm and peaceful while they go about their lawful businesses. He assured people in the state of government’s commitment to safeguarding their lives and property.
Attempts to get military authorities’ reaction on the incident proved abortive as the Army Public Relations Officer, Colonel Usman Abdul, neither answered repeated calls to his cell phone nor reply to an SMS sent to it.
Meanwhile, former Head of State a national leader of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) has called on the state government to fish out those behind the recent attacks in Kaura local government area of the state.
It could be recalled that suspected gunmen attacked three communities in Kaura area about two weeks ago, killing over 100 villagers.
The former head of state made the call when he led a delegation of the national leaders of the APC on a condolence visit to the Chief of Marwa, Malam Tagwi Sambo in Kaura.
According to Buhari, perpetrators must be brought to book and punished according to the law, to deter other criminals.
“If Nigerians give their mandate to APC come 2015 general elections, it will address the prolonged insecurity that has been bedevilling the country which the government of President Goodluck Jonathan has woefully failed to address. For me, I am not a stranger in Kaura because my elder brother is a close friend of the Chief of Marwa. So, I feel like I am at home here,” he said.
The delegation donated N2 million to the victims and the money was presented by Buhari to the Chief of Marwa.
In his remarks, former Kaduna state Commissioner for Finance a chieftain of the APC in Kaduna state, Alhaji Sulaiman Hunkuyi, condemned the attacks and commiserated with the communities over the incident.
Responding, Sambo thanked them for the visit and described the incident as an act of God. He expressed the hope that a similar incident will never occur again in the area.
Some of the national officers of the APC who accompanied Buhari on the visit include the Deputy National Chairman, Aminu Bello Masari and the Deputy National Secretary of the party, Malam Nasiru el-Rufa’i.
