SOKAPEP debunks claims of attacks in Southern Kaduna

The Southern Kaduna Peace Practitioners (SOKAPEP) forum has refuted reports of continuous killings in Southern Kaduna, claiming the news is untrue.

SOKAPEP further accused the public relations officer of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU), Luka Binniyat, of spreading falsehood.

Binniyat had claimed in news reports that, “Adara natives of Kallah ward in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State were ambushed on Thursday, 29th October 2020.”

He had alleged that Mr. Kaduna Garba, 32, a father of two, Francis Bala and 18 others were attacked while on their way to their native Magunguna from the IDP camp.

But, SOKAPEP says the claims are false, insisting that Southern Kaduna, which had witnessed tragic attacks by armed men in the past, has now been restored with peace.

A press release by the National Coordinator of the Peace Advocacy Group, Rev. Dauda Fadia warned conflict merchants against rupturing the peace of the zone.

The group called on Kaduna indigenes to support the efforts of Governor Nasir El’rufai in delivering the dividends of democracy to every part of the state.

“We hasten to state that the claims made by Binniyat, the National PRO of Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU), were deliberately concocted, to achieve a premeditated agenda of hate, incitement and confusion”, SOKAPEP’.

The group said it could easily see through the antics of the person of Binniyat and the group he seeks to represent.

The organisation said it was at a loss as to what SOKAPU stands to benefit by inciting crisis through falsehood.

“Who engages in such a dangerous spread of falsehood, at a time the Federal, state, local government, military and other sister security agencies were working tooth and nail, to address the security challenges in our beloved Southern Kaduna?

“We make bold to say that, upon reading the wild claims, we immediately undertook assessment visits to the villages he claimed were taken over by militias and we discovered that no inch of our land was so annexed by

The group reiterated its position that peace has since returned to the troubled Southern Kaduna and advised every lover of the region to support the consolidation of the existing peace, to make it lasting.

It warned against the distortion of facts deliberately geared towards division and stoking of ethnic and religious tensions.

“Until we begin to speak the truth and call a spade a spade, the Almighty God in heaven will be angry with us; our God is a just God, and so will lasting peace remains elusive.

“However, we sympathise with the people of Kajuru, Chikun, Zango Kataf and Kachia local government area in Southern Kaduna, over the recent killing of some members of the communities.

“We urge them to remain calm and wait for the outcome of the investigation by the authorities, to unravel the suspected criminals behind the wicked act.

SOKAPEP also debunked claims that there are 50,000 IDPs in Southern Kaduna, saying the figures are not only outrageous and unsubstantiated but an attempt to extort donors.

“SOKAPEP calls on all donors to disregard this falsehood. For the record, we have less than 3000 genuine IDP’s in the entire Southern Kaduna scattered around all the camps.

“We wish to further debunk the false narrative of continuous attacks’ on Southern Kaduna communities and to note, however, that the few cases of criminality in the area are not peculiar to any particular tribe or ethnic origin.

“In one word, we dare to say that there is no empirical evidence to show that some villages in Southern Kaduna have been sacked, neither is there any occupation of communities by a certain militia group.