Women Protest In Jalingo Over Monday Attacks And Killings
BY AMEH IDAJAGI, JALINGO – Following consistent attacks and killings in their area, hundreds of Kona women on Tuesday protested through the streets of Jalingo as a means of drawing attention to their unbearable plight of turning them to widows as a result of targeted killings and arrests of their husbands and children that are the victims.
The aggrieved women who dressed in black attire to mourn their deceased ones, decried the encroachment of their ancestral homes by armed bandits.
They specifically demanded the immediate release of their youths, who they claimed are innocent but arrested by security operatives.
The procession which started from Kona village lasted for hours until it was terminated at Nukkai, a suburb of Jalingo.
Speaking on the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer in Taraba state, DSP David Misal, said five people were killed in the Monday night attacks, adding that the bandits who were heavily armed, attacked the villages on motorcycles.
Misal however said that security has been beefed up to ensure compliance to avert further attacks.
As part of measures to curtail the attacks and possible reprisals, Governor Darius Ishaku on Monday declared a 14 hour curfew on Jalingo, the Taraba state capital.
The curfew which commences from 4:00pm to 6:00am daily and will be in force untill further notice.
The Monday night attacks created tension which led to influx of fleeing victims into Jalingo.
Our correspondent that visited Kasuwan Bera, a popular market in the metropolis, noted that it has become a shadow of itself, as most of the traders who were domiciled in the sacked villages have deserted it.
