The lawmaker representing Pankshin/Kanke/Kanam Federal Constituency of Plateau State in the House of Representatives, Yusuf Gagdi, has raised alarm over the source of recurring violent attacks in the state.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television, Gagdi disclosed that most of the assaults on Plateau communities are coordinated from neighbouring states, particularly through forest reserves along boundary areas.
“The report is right to say that some of these attacks are coordinated from the neighbouring state,” he said.
According to him, the forest reserve located near Plateau’s boundary with Taraba State has become a safe haven for bandits, kidnappers, and criminals who migrated from the Northwest and Northeast, especially from Zamfara.
“Farmers are not allowed to farm there since it is a reserved area. Unfortunately, this restriction has turned the forest into a stronghold for criminals. From there, they plan and launch deadly attacks on civilians,” Gagdi explained.
The lawmaker stressed that the inability of locals to access the reserved forest has further emboldened criminal groups, leaving communities vulnerable to coordinated raids and kidnappings.
He urged both federal and state security agencies to intensify surveillance of the forest reserve and dismantle the criminal networks using it as a launchpad for violence.
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