Tensions are mounting in several Plateau communities following the recent arrest of local youths by the Nigerian Army, a move that residents claim is undermining their ability to defend themselves against escalating banditry.
While military officials have labelled those taken into custody as suspected bandits, community leaders and indigenous representatives are speaking out, asserting that the detainees are actually local vigilantes and protectors of the land.
According to reports from community advocates, these arrests create a dangerous vacuum in local security. Residents argue that whenever the youth organise to provide a frontline defence against invaders, they are systematically disarmed and detained by security forces.
“This is why we cannot defend ourselves,” one community spokesperson shared, highlighting a recurring pattern where the removal of local defenders is immediately followed by a resurgence of violence. “Anytime this happens, the community faces attacks again, with many killed, because our defenders are locked up.”
The outcry centres on a perceived misalignment of military intelligence and action. Locals maintain that the actual terrorists remain at large, reportedly hiding in the surrounding bushes and mountainous terrain to plan future raids.
There is a growing sentiment of frustration among the indigenous population, with some accusing the military of inadvertently or intentionally aiding the aggressors by stripping vulnerable villages of their primary means of resistance.
Community members are now calling for a comprehensive and transparent investigation into the identity of those arrested.
