Jos Crisis Evidence Of Internal Colonialism

Jos Crisis Evidence Of Internal Colonialism, Says Militants

THE recurring ethnic conflict in Jos, the Plateau State capital, in North Central Nigeria, is an evidence of internal colonialism, the Joint Revolutionary Council (JRC), an insurgent network, said on Friday.

AkanimoReports said the group claimed that the last of such ethnic conflicts was the gruesome murder of over 500 persons mostly Christians, in a day.

Spokesperson of the JRC, Mr. Bakabio Walter, said, ''the recent Jos killings is a tragic reminder of the severity of internal colonialism in the entity called Nigeria. The occupying Fulani militants, backed by the Nigerian military, unleashed mayhem and commited genocide against the indigenous people of Jos''.

Although the military chiefs in Jos haver denied their involvement, the Niger Delta militants however, went on, ''how else can we explain that the Nigerian military led by the Fulani aristocracy was informed of plans by Fulani militants to invade indigenous settlements in Jos and environs, yet there was no response. This is totally unacceptable and must be condemned by all genuine advocates of peace and justice''.

According to them, ''this is a litmus test for the Jonathan administration. The sack of Nigeria's National Security Adviser who used his inaction to support Jos massacre might be a welcome development but it is definitely not enough. No amount of soldiers sent to Jos can bring an end to this conflict''

They argued that if the Jonathan administration is committed to resolving the recurring ethnic violence in Jos, the Niger Delta among other volatile regions of thwe country, ''the only logical thing to do is to convene a Sovereign National Conference of all the ethnic nationalities that were forcefully conscripted into Nigeria''.

The insurgents claimed that their mission is to achieve independence for a Niger Delta Federation and not to seek relevance for the sake of patronage, adding, ''we shall continue to strike until we achieve our ultimate goal. We note with curiosity, the continuous denial of knowledge of our attack on oil installations by the management of Shell and Agip and the Joint Task Force (JTF'').

Continuing, they claimed that the management of Agip ''is meeting with criminals, called 'repentant militants', who are secretly claiming responsibilty for our actions for the purpose of receiving monetary benefit from Agip. No amount of money you give to them will prevent us from striking you more. Our actions will be sustained and will differentiate us from the criminal pretenders in MEND who are negotiating currently with the management of Agip''.

ENDS

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