Jos Residents Desert Streets Over Fear Of ViolenceFrom Isa Abdulsalami, Jos

Jos Residents Desert Streets Over Fear Of ViolenceFrom Isa Abdulsalami, Jos

Quite unlike the accustomed way the streets of Jos, the capital of Plateau State, throb with life, they were deserted yesterday by the residents who were gripped by the fear of a fresh outbreak of violence.
Parents who refused to come out from their homes equally did not send their wards to school, thereby making schools in the Jos metropolis empty.
The fear was triggered by a letter purportedly written "on behalf of Al-Qaeda Network of Islamic Revolution of Nigeria in conjunction with Jasawa Association in Plateau State" to destabilize the fragile peace in Jos.
But the Moslem community in Plateau State and Moslem Ummah in Jos North have dissociated themselves from the document, saying it was not only deliberate and malicious falsehood, but an attempt by some state government aides to further cause unrest in the community for their selfish ends.
According to the letter, the Moslem community is set to launch another attack on the indigenes and the Christian community. It also explained "why we must continue Jihad in Plateau State", adding that the state had made several promises to the Moslem citizens which it failed to fulfill.
But yesterday in a statement signed by Alhaji Sani Mudi, on behalf of its chairman, the Moslem Ummah accused the state government of unnecessarily heating up Jos without a cause, adding that "it was only a wild imagination of some government officials who sat down and wrote such a letter to project the Moslem Community in a bad light. The Jos North Moslem Ummah has further clearly discovered that, that document could not have emanated from any Moslem or Islamic organisation in view of the glaring spelling errors in some basic Islamic terms, as well as incoherent presentation of issues."
While calling on the state security agents to investigate the source of the letter, the Moslems also urged Governor Jonah Jang to caution his aides as "their actions are retrogressive" and capable of disrupting the hard-earned peace.
Responding, the state government through its Senior Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dan Manjang said the letter could not have come from the same government that was doing everything to protect its citizens and to ensure that absolute peace was restored in the state. He said when the government got the rumour, it was wise to alert the security agents, since such rumours eventually turned out to be true in the past. He said the state would no longer allow itself to be caught unawares. Manjang further appealed to citizens for calm and report any suspicious moves to the government, adding that the security agents were not sleeping on duty, and would deal decisively with any one suspected to foment trouble.