Alli urges Plateau communities to shun violence
From Isa Abdulsalami, Jos
PLATEAU State Administrator, Maj.-Gen. Chris Alli (rtd), has appealed to communities in the state to shun violence as a means of settling disputes.
He urged them to resort to dialogue and rely on government to settle disputes.
Alli advised the people not to allow anybody to create conditions that will lead to killings and destruction again in Tarok land.
The administrator addressed the people of Langtang-North and Langtang-South at the weekend at the end of his tour of the southern senatorial district.
He said that making peace is not as easy as making war, adding that the process of making peace is tedious and difficult.
He remarked that it is not everybody that is happy with the peace process embarked upon in the state, adding that despite the people's feelings, nobody can stop it.
The administrator used the forum to educate the people on the peace conference coming up next month, saying it is aimed at solving their problems. He stresses the need for all the local councils to be fully represented.
He also expressed happiness that calm and peace have returned to Langtang-North and Langtang-South councils and appealed to the people to surrender the illegal weapons in their possession to government, saying it is only the police and the military that are authorised by law to handle such arms.
He stressed the need for the youths to obey their elders and the government, failure of which, he said, the administration would be forced to move troops in the locality as the last option.
Alli maintained that the people have a tradition and heritage to protect and acknowledged the contributions of their traditional rulers to the peace process in the state.
At Quaan Pan Council, Alli praised the people for not reneging on their promise to restore and maintain peace and expressed satisfaction, vision and commitment of the people to peace and prosperity in the land.
The administrator described Quaan Pan as a home of quality, productivity and peace and commended the council chairman and the traditional ruler for their untiring efforts at ensuring that peace and tranquillity reigned, not only in the council but in the border areas.
He had earlier threatened to deploy troops to Shendam if the restive youths in the area continued to take the laws into their hands.
Alli, who specifically mentioned the Gamai youths, added that he was issuing the last warning to them against taking the laws into their hands no matter the provocation.
His warning came on the heels of the recent incident where five men were killed and three women sexually assaulted when they were abducted between July 9 and July 16 by unknown persons.
He announced that the matter was being investigated and that anybody involved will not be spared.
Alli expressed regrets that after signing an accord with the government for peace, some of them still constituted cogs in the process.
He urged them to continue to promote peace in the area and to report any person or group of persons wanting to breach peace in the area.
In Yelwa town, a flash point of crisis in the zone, he said he was happy as those who fled the area in the heat of the crisis are now returning, adding that full security has been put in place to protect lives and property.
