Taraba Governor Raises Alarm Over Threat To Attack State In 10 Days

Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba state on Thursday raised the alarm over an impending attack on the state.

The governor said he received a notice from insurgents who threatened to attack the state within the next 10 days.

Speaking at a reception for the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Jalingo, Ishaku added that he had already put all security agencies in the state on alert.

He said, “We are on notice that in 10 days, we (Taraba) shall be attacked. I have alerted all security agencies. We are waiting.

“A helicopter has dropped arms and ammunition in the night without its mission established. It is not a time to keep quiet; we are living in fear.”

The governor lamented that he has to rely on the Federal Government for the security of his state, saying it had affected his ability to fulfil his campaign promises.

He said, “Unfortunately, I have provided development but peace has been elusive.”

The governor added, “Here, we rely on people who, when you give them instructions, they tell you to wait until they get a clearance from above.

“Before the clearance comes from Abuja, you have lost hundreds of lives. This is absolutely absurd and disappointing, particularly when you meet people like me who want to work with zeal.”

The governor further decried the slaying of 68 residents of the state by suspected herdsmen and the killing of a member of the State House of Assembly, Hosea Ibi, who was kidnapped in front of a military barracks.

“We are sad and angry because there is no security in our land. Taraba buried 68 persons when Benue was burying 73. Should we continue like that? The choice is ours.

“But we shall continue to cry and scream. If we are not heard in Nigeria, we might be heard in Chad, Egypt, England and or US,” he lamented.

Secondus appealed to the federal government to be alive to its primary responsibility of protecting the lives and properties of Nigerians, especially the vulnerable.

He also appealed for a review of the country’s security infrastructure to end the killings.

The Herald Nigeria recalls that the Taraba State Police Commissioner, David Akinremi denied reports of the interception of a helicopter filled with arms in the state.

He classified the information as “an unfounded and misleading rumour”.