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Jonah Jang: The Milosovic of Jos By Ahmad Salisu History will forever remember people like Slovodan Milsovic of Serbia negatively for his inhumane and cruel atrocities committed against humanity. The Serbian Muslims witnessed ‘holocaust’ genocide in the name of ethnic cleansing. The recent genocide of Muslims enmass had similarities with the events of mass murders in the secceeded territories of the former USSR, the later happened in Nigeria. The common elements that linked the two together are the relativity of the number of casualties and the coincidental evil intensions against Muslim community. My attention has been drawn to many calls for the resignation of Governor David Jonah Jang from the office of the Governor of Plateau State, and other opinions including an editorial of a respected newspaper calling for thorough investigation and punishment of the culprits and if the culprits is enjoying immunity should be allowed to terminate the immunity terms. To me if atrocities committed or the person could not guaranteed trial in the International Criminal Court (ICC). Then an immediate call to the president Alhaji Umaru Musa Yaradua to declare state of emergency in Plateau State should have been ideal and the prosecution of the culprits commenced immediately. It has been a known fact that most elections in Nigeria were normally conducted during the week ends. And these precedence was taken to ensure proper control and administrative conveniences and in case of even security of lives and properties of the citizens. The Jang administration fixed Thursday deliberately when the result is announced on Friday and the avoidable crises erupted there is ample opportunity to the killers to entrap the Muslims in their Friday prayer mosque and their respective wives and children helpless in their homes. The second plan was that the declaration of Jos North election result in favour of the PDP Christian candidate against the ANPP Muslim candidate in a predominantly Muslim populated area will definitely trigger crises. But the Jang government went ahead in its ill will to establish its long desired ‘settlers’ eradication plan. A case that could hardly be comprehended by the comparison an Hausa man cannot stand and win election in Sabon Gari East or West ward of Kano State where the settlers are predominantly Christians and non indigenes. Likewise the Jos North where the settlers enjoyed landside victory since first republic. Only Hon Lumunba Ade was said to have enjoyed the settlers protest votes against their contestants a Christian elected Chairman. The third plan was the Governors inability to take quick action on the crises at the beginning. Starting from the Jos SIEC decisions to change the collation centre from the normal place three good times aggravates the insinuations that the crises has been premeditated by the PDP led government of Jonah Jang. The worst part of it was that it was a known fact that the volatile Jos North had been for many years under Care-taker leadership without election. It was even proved that the Hausa/Fulani Muslim candidate was said to have got a landslide victory in the last March 2008 abortive/canceled local government elections. The Governor’s skeptism and lurk warm attitude to address the people of Plateau State on that day and his unguarded statements over calls on him to step aside made it worthy for us to register it as the fourth reason to hold the government to ran some over the Jos carnage. The Governor was said to inform journalists and other groups calling for his resignation to tell other Governors that had similar experiences in the past to also resign, meaning that he does not felt that killing 466 Muslims, burning their properties and displacement of thousand others did not warrant his leaving the seat of which he was elected to protect The fifth reason advanced in proving Jang’s government’s hands in fuelling the carnage is the announcement of the result of the election by the Jos SIEC amids carnage and His Excellency’s unprecedented address claiming that the carnage was facilitated by imported foreign nationals from Niger Republic and Cameroon. Meaning that the Hausa/Fulani were the perpetrators because there wasn’t any Birom as a National of Niger or Cameroon. The federal government is now with the four aces in its own domain. It is high time to declare state of emergency in the Plateau State. Constitute a high powered investigation panel that will be saddled with the responsibilities of digging to root of the cause of the carnage without fear or favour. All found guilty by the report should be sanctioned accordingly. A time has come when the killers must be uncovered. A killer will continue killing, if goes unpunished. This was not the first time such tragic incidence occurred in Jos. But happened to be the first with clear government thumbprint on. Therefore, if Slovodan Milosovic as a president of a country could be punished for mass killing, Saddam Hussain in the same suit, I see no reason why an ordinary Mayor equivalent in other countries could not be brought to book for similar atrocities. The president Alhaji Umaru Musa Yaradua should act swiftly in this regard, his failure of which will be regarded as aiding and abetting cruelty. Ahmad Salisu |