Bokkos Youths to Security Agencies: Drive Out Terrorists or We’ll Defend Ourselves

Youths in Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State have called on the military and police to flush out terrorists occupying their communities, warning that continued inaction could force them to resort to self-defence.

The call was made on Thursday in Jos during a press conference by the Bokkos Concerned Youths (BCY). The group decried the persistent killings, displacement, and annexation of villages by armed militias, which they said had left their people in anguish for over a decade.

In a statement signed by BCY President, Dapet Chris Ortega, the group lamented that despite showing restraint from taking up arms, security agencies have failed to protect them while attackers continue to sack their villages.

According to Ortega, more than 10 communities have been completely taken over by bandits, while over 61 others have suffered violent attacks, displacing thousands of residents and destroying properties worth billions of naira.

He listed some of the communities now under the control of the assailants to include Hokk, Nawula, Pangkap, Luwapan, Fokoldep, Dangru, Bodel, Duun, and Dulu.

“For more than 10 years, our people have been subjected to senseless killings, kidnappings, and displacement,” Ortega said. “Entire families, including women and children, have been wiped out, and our ancestral lands seized.

“If the military and police cannot protect us and drive these terrorists away, we will be left with no choice but to take the law into our own hands. We can no longer sit back and watch our people slaughtered and our communities destroyed.”