The Mwaghavul Development Association, MDA, has denied claims that it runs a militia or works with the Department of State Services, DSS,or any other security agency to attack Fulani communities in Plateau State.
In a statement signed by its Director of Public Affairs, Friday Derwam, the association called the allegation false. It described it as part of an emerging media campaign to discredit security agencies trying to contain violence in the state.
The MDA also praised DSS personnel for what it called the “sincerity and fair-mindedness” with which they have handled security operations in Plateau.
The association said groups behind violence in the state had changed tactics and were increasingly using social media to spread inflammatory claims against security personnel.
One such claim, it said, was that Mwaghavul youths were working with the DSS and Operation Rainbow, the state’s joint security outfit, to attack Fulani residents in their communities.
“The media campaign by the terror groups attempting to sell the narrative that Mwaghavul youths, in collaboration with the Directorate of State Services, DSS, and Operation Rainbow joint forces, attack Fulanis in their abodes is just but a fallacy,” the statement said.
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The MDA said it had no militia and no arrangement with the DSS, Operation Rainbow or any other security body to carry out operations against any ethnic group. It said security agencies in the affected areas had acted within their constitutional duties and rules of engagement, protecting vulnerable communities and limiting the activities of attackers.
Claims of a planned campaign
According to the association, recent security operations had worked well enough to trigger attempts to undermine the agencies through what it called the “brutal fabrication of baseless and malicious lies.” It said those behind the campaign wanted to win national sympathy and push the Federal Government into decisions based on misleading information.
The MDA also said it had received reports that groups it accused of terrorism were planning media appearances to push allegations against security agencies. The statement gave no evidence for this claim and did not name the groups.
Appeal to the media
The association urged journalists to verify claims coming out of the Plateau conflict before publishing them.
“MDA condemns in totality such intentions and draws the attention of the media to be partners in the quest for lasting peace in Plateau State and not pencils in the hands of terrorists,” Derwam said.
It called on the Federal Government, other authorities and Nigerians to support legitimate security efforts to stabilise affected communities and restore peace across the state.
Background
The statement comes amid ongoing insecurity and competing accounts of attacks in parts of Plateau State. The Mwaghavul are one of the state’s major indigenous ethnic groups and live mainly in Mangu Local Government Area, including Mangu, Panyam, Kerang, Pushit and nearby districts.
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