Following alleged secret killings which led to minor clashes on Thursday night, and allegedly led to the killing of an undisclosed number of people, a 24-hour curfew has been imposed on Kafanchan, headquarters of Jama’a local government area of Kaduna state.
Tension, according to sources, had been building up in the area since Monday, after the gruesome killing on Monday of a young man by yet to be identified culprit(s), which led the people to believe the persistent killings earlier thought to have been perpetrated by armed robbers was the handiwork of some hoodlums, leading to a mass protest on Tuesday by the youths in the area.
It was gathered that since Tuesday’s protest, there had been skirmishes, leading to mounting tension in the city, prompting the imposition of the 24 hour curfew.
Meanwhile, the state government and the leadership of the Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) has appealed for calm while a combined team of soldiers and the Police have been deployed to the area to ensure that normalcy returns.
In a statement by the Director General, Media and Publicity, Mallam Ahmed Maiyaki, State Governor, Mukthar Yero called on the people of the area to remain calm and law abiding, saying that government was doing all within its powers to contain the situation.
The governor said security agencies in the state had been directed to take necessary action to restore peace and normalcy to the area.
He also warned those fomenting trouble in the state to desist from their devilish plots to plunge the state into confusion, adding that “as a responsible Government, we shall not shirk our constitutional duty of protecting the lives and property of the entire people of Kaduna state no matter what it will take.”
Yero assured that the government was already investigating the root cause of the conflict and will not hesitate to prosecute anyone found culpable, irrespective of their status in the society and asked the people of the state to go about their lawful businesses in disregard of rumours that may be intended to escalate the situation.
