Bassa attacks: Orphanage Totally Destroyed, 156 Orphans Displaced as Coordinator Warns

The urgent need for government to address the security challenges bedevilling the country to avoid its collapse has been further stressed.  The Plateau State Coordinator of the Association of Orphanage and Home Operators in Nigeria (ASOHON), Daniel Asama noted with dismay how laxity on the part of government and its unconcerned posture has emboldened crime and criminality stressing that if the ugly trend was not curtailed on time, may likely consumed us all.
Asama made this submission while addressing journalists on the premises of Binta Orphanage Home in Jebbu-Miango Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State where the facility ( worth over N200million) was razed down by suspected armed Fulani Herdsmen who are said to have invaded the community, killed many people and burnt down more than 250 houses, several vehicles and destroyed farmlands. The destruction was said to have continued for days unabated.
The Coordinator said that he got a distressed call three days ago from the Coordinator of the Orphanage, Joshua Choji Dickson intimating him of  the security situation in the community. “This is not the first time this is happening. It has happened before now and the Coordinator took a wise decision by evacuating the children before the situation escalated.

“When the current security challenge came up, he put a call to me and informed me of it. I, in turn tried to equally contact security operatives to help evacuate the children but it’s like they were over whelmed and I couldn’t just have other people around me to help with the evaluation.

“However, we were able to diverse a way and eventually evacuated the children to a safe place were they are currently.

“And I am telling you that no sooner had these children were evacuated than the assailants came, attacked and razed down the Orphanage as you can see”.

The Coordinator thanked God as no life was lost in the Orphanage, he however noted with concerned the resources they will put in reconstructing the facility as well as how the children would be taken cared of outside the facility. “We thank God that no life was lost in this Orphanage except those we lost in the community. However, the property destroyed is worth over N200million. And if consider the situation in the currently, you would agree with me that we are in a predicament

“We actually need assistance. We are in pains and in a precarious situation. Can you imagine having 156 children and they have to eat every other day, they have to sleep in a place and we have to ensure they are warm and comfortable?

“It’s not a situation you would want to imagined. As I talk to you, I don’t even know how we would cope up tonight”, he said.

Asama had his reservation on intervention of government stressing that if government really hold not only the Orphanage but the entire community at heart, would have since come to their aid but that has not been the case. “I do not see government coming into this. Already, government is aware of our existence.

“The government is aware of what has happened and is still happening here. My though has been that before this time, government would have seen the need practically react to our plight but that has not been the case.

“So, one would not be wrong to feel that our plight is not government’s priority.

“I must also tell you that this is why we always advice government to be proactive by living up to its responsibility in ensuring that such ugly incidents do not occur.

“Now it has happened. The Orphanage is destroyed, the whole community is destroyed, many people lost their lives, those that survived the carnage are vulnerable and have been running for their lives while we have 156 children in our hands struggling to survive”, the Coordinator said.
On what he felt should be done to bring an end to the incessant menace, Asama said, “I wouldn’t necessarily be the one to tell government what it should do because government knows the needful to be done.

“Government knows what it is suppose to do. Government cannot claim it doesn’t know the perpetrators of these heinous crimes, government cannot also say that it cannot apprehend them.

“I would not believe that because Nigeria has all it takes to overcome this menace. The intelligence of our security apparatus is impeccable.

“My only concern is the implementation of tactical. Because we appear not to have problems gathering intelligence but it’s like problems only arise when it comes to the implementation of intelligence.

“So, Government knows those that have been doing these and why they are doing it but government simply doesn’t want to muscle the will power to address the situation and until that is done, this menace would continue unabated”.

ASOHON Coordinator however, sounded a note of warning to all thus; “But let me say this and I am saying it with all sincerity and high degree of seriousness; that we are all in this Boat together and nobody is safe, not even those at the top.

“Because if this monster is not tamed now would in no distance future consume all of us irrespective of our status in the society.

“So, it’s not just only about this Orphanage, it’s not just only about the children or the Orphans or the Irigwe Community, it’s about all of us.

“Where you are today thinking it’s a comfort zone may turn a flash point tomorrow. It is for this reason that we would continue to call on government to rise up to its constitutional responsibility of maintaining law and order and ensure sanity is maintained.

“What happened in this community is not just callous but insensitive and inhuman. I can’t just understand why a human being would be this brutal and go this far to talking the life of a fellow human being and destroy abode for the orphans.

“It’s a shame to humanity. I am so sad because we are now orphaning these children the second time and they are going through a lot of trauma, more so that the parents to most of them were killed in manners similar to what happened here. Consequently, the children were brought into this Home for safety and for healing of their trauma.

“Unfortunately, their predicament seems to be aggravated. And you can imagine the kind of generation we are raising.

“You can imagine the future of this country with traumatized children. How do we solve the problem if this children grow up with this pain and keeping malice in their hearts?

“What do you think of a child growing up knowing that a particular ethnic group or tribe has been pursing their lives all the while?

“How can this child grow up to love this tribe or ethnic group? There is danger ahead, the future is bleak. This country is on the brink of collapse if nothing is urgently done to address this ugly situation.

“It is sad that the situation has escalated to this point. It is also unfortunate that this carnage went on for four days unabated and government could not hold it down.

“It’s even more worrisome that this community (which has suffered series of similar attacks) is less than a kilometer to 3rd Armoured Division, one of the biggest military facilities in West Africa”, Asama lamented.