GOVERNOR Jonah Jang of Plateau State has expressed his opposition to the hasty movement of persons arrested in connection with the January 17 violence in Jos to Abuja. He asked the affected authorities to return the suspects to Jos for prosecution by the police.

For lawyers in the state and some youth groups, the continuous setting up of panels to probe the recurring ethno-religious violence in the state without sanctioning the masterminds is mere window-dressing of the problem.

Jang , who spoke in his office in Jos yesterday when the management of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Resolution from Abuja, led by the Director-General, Dr. Joseph Golwa visited him, noted that the body is strategic in finding lasting solutions to frequent violence in the country.

The governor questioned why people arrested during the civil unrest in the state were quickly taken to Abuja for trial and called on the Federal Government to return even those held for the 2008 crisis to the state for trial.

He said: "Plateau State is not a pariah state within the federation. It is part and parcel of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is one of the federating units of the country and we must be treated with respect like any other state of the federation."

Golwa said as an agency of the federal government mandated to provide mechanism for peace resolution, it would assist the state government to bring enduring peace to the people.

Through the Human Rights Committee Section of the Plateau State branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the lawyers urged the government and law enforcement agencies to go beyond setting up investigation panels on sectarian crises to punishing the actual culprits.

Reacting to the recent Jos crisis, the NBA said although commissions were set up to look into similar crises in the past, no noticeable sanctions were meted out to the culprits.

In a statement by its branch chairman, Alfred Damun, the panel expressed the fears that the unceremonious recall of the former Plateau police commissioner, Gregory Anyating, during the crisis might jeopardise the police investigation of the violence.

Also, the Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has called on the United Nations (UN) and other foreign powers to save the people of Plateau State from the bias and massive killing of the Christians in Jos by soldiers.

"My greatest surprise is that these soldiers disguised themselves in military uniforms and wreck havoc on the people. Some of the soldiers move in civilian vehicles."

In a statement made available to The Guardian in Lagos, Pofi alleged that seven youths from his community sent to the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) to assist some injured persons were arrested, harassed and molested by soldiers. "They undressed and collected all their cell phones and money. One of them escaped while six are nowhere to be found. The Nigerian Army must produce them immediately."

He gave their names as Bitrus Ajang, Azi Igyem, Ali Kaze, Ajik Azi, Arum Ajang and Jamkru Langtang."

The Guardian Newspaper, lagos