The Special Military Task Force, code named Operation Safe Haven (OPSH), has warmed some Plateau groups to stop misleading the public on the capacity of the taskforce to save lives.
The OPSH said the taskforce has done very well in restoring and promoting peace in the State, a process that has led to the loss of lives of its personnel.
The Military taskforce was responding to a press conference organised by a group under the aegis of Plateau Youth Group, where it accused the taskforce of not responding to notice of attacks issued by Fulani militia.
In a press text issued by the OPSH Media Information Officer, Captain Oya James, the taskforce said the deliberate attempt to discredit the successes recorded by OPSH on the Plateau spanning over a decade in areas of kinetic and non-kinetic operations would not be tolerated.
According to Oya: “The Operation over the years has made quantifiable sacrifices including losing lives of its troops to achieve peace on the Plateau and environs. It is therefore unfortunate for a group like the Plateau Youth Council to accuse OPSH of complacency.
“The recent unrest in parts of Plateau State has been strongly addressed by OPSH through timely deployment of troops to confront assailants in the affected communities. We have neutralised scores of the perpetrators of the dastardly acts and many sustaining gunshot wounds. Several arrests have been made and currently undergoing interrogations. Those found culpable will be made to face the full wrath of the law. The affected communities have also been dominated with aggressive patrols to prevent further breach of the peaceful existence achieved in the recent past”, he said.
He continued: “OPSH wishes to assure the good people of Plateau State that it is committed to protecting the lives and properties of all. We have stepped up our operational capability and will descend heavily on anybody perpetrating or aiding criminality. To live in peace, we must live together and to flush criminal elements out of our communities, we must support the security agencies.
“The general public, especially Plateau residents, must trust OPSH by providing timely information to aid the operations of troops. OPSH remains committed to safeguarding the lives and property of citizens from criminal elements and it would not be deterred by false allegations from individuals or groups”, the statement said.
Our correspondent had reported that the Military taskforce are not spirits who should be everywhere at the same time.
A trip to most of the attack scenes have shown that the places where these killings take place are hinterlands that are not motorable neither can it be easily accessed on bikes or foots.
“They are difficult terrains”, an interview conducted with a former OPSH Commander had said.
The advice therefore is for communities to use the distressed call numbers provided to them to reach security personnels once they observe any strange movements or sight strangers who are not residents of the communities, the former OPSH boss said.