A Judicial Commission of Inquiry is to be established by the Kaduna State Government to investigate the violent conflict and killings in Kajuru and Kachia local government areas of the state.

The Senior Special Assistant to the State Governor on Media & Publicity, Mr. Samuel Aruwan, disclosed this in a statement in Kaduna on Saturday.

He quoted the State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, as having given this indication in Karamai while addressing the survivors of the attacks that took place this week in parts of the two local government areas. The Governor, according to Aruwan, explained that building sustainable peace in the area requires that all the facts around the violent conflict be established.

The statement said that Governor el-Rufai was accompanied on the visit by the heads of the security agencies in Kaduna State, including Rear Admiral D. M. Dogonyaro of the Nigerian Navy; General O. J. Akpor, Garrison Commander 1 Division Nigerian Army; Air Commodore I. A. Sani of the Nigerian Air Force and Police Commissioner Ahmad Abdurrahman. Also on the delegation were Priscilla Ankut and Saleh Momale of the Kaduna State Peace Commission.

“The delegation inspected the wreckage left behind by the attackers in Karamai, and prayed at the mass grave where 15 of the 40 residents killed were buried. A policeman was also killed in the attack,” the statement said.

It said that the governor commiserated with the people on the loss of lives and sympathised with the survivors, adding: “He appealed to them that even in their grief, they should resist any temptation to engage in vengeance because the cycle of attack and reprisal can only bring more pain.

“He urged all communities to avoid any resort to self-help and report their complaints, suspicions and observations to the law enforcement and security agencies.

“He condemned the attackers as godless people who are wantonly violating the injunctions of the Holy Books of Christianity and Islam.”

The chairman of Kachia Local Government, the District Heads of Kufana, Kajuru LGA, and Bishini in Kachia LGA and the Village Head of Karamai also spoke at the event, according to the statement.

It said that they explained the plight of the people who were displaced from their homes after the attack and made suggestions for further securing the areas.

The statement quoted el-Rufai as saying that the State Emergency Management Agency has already visited the survivors and is handling the provision of relief for the obviously traumatised survivors.

“He assured the people that the state government will address the issue of the access road into the area in conjunction with the local government councils and find ways to address the absence of communications network in the area,” the statement said.

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