 Terrorists on Sunday night reportedly queued over 28 people in separate attacks in Malaga Muwan and Sogwon communities of Kagaro, Chifdam, and Kauraluka government area of Kaduna State. The Council Chairman Honorable Matthew Simon, who confirmed the incident, said he could only confirm seven people gruesomely queued in Sogwon community. The attack is coming barely five days after an attack was launched in Malaga Muwan killing three persons. According to him, all the houses in Sogwon community had completely raised down the terror study that is yet to confirm the killings in Malaga Muwan. Matthew is out of residence in the area to remain calm as security agents were being deployed to carry out investigation in the area. Well, joining us to discuss on the attacks is Reverend Joseph Hyab, is the Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria. We go on a short break when we get back. The news continues. Well, we're still on the news and joining us to discuss tonight on the Kaduna State attack is Reverend Joseph Hyab is the Kaduna State Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria and Jonathan Ashakai is the Chairman and former president of the Kaduna People's Union. It's good to have you join us tonight. Thank you very much. All right, I'm going to start with you, Jonathan. What's the atmosphere like in Kaduna after the unfortunate incident? Well, it's very tense following the attacks that took place last week, precisely on Tuesday and Wednesday. And one that took place early morning hours of today. The attackers are still looking around the hills and they are threatened to come back and the villagers have been, I just came from there this evening. The villagers have been packing their things and relocating to neighboring villages and so the atmosphere is still very tense. So back to you, Reverend Hyab. Don't you think it's about time we enforce community policing in the country where people take charge of their security themselves? We've had the government trying to come out to condemn these attacks, of course, and we still have a repeat of the situation. Don't you think it's about time for people to take control of their own security, especially the northern part of the country? Unfortunately, leaders or the political leaders or those in power have actually been paying leave service to issue of people protecting themselves. Especially in southern Kaduna, we know very well that sometimes when they come, they just go to villages, ransack houses, pick even them guns, daggers and few things that people are keeping to chase away enemies like these criminals and then they will now parade them out there and say they have gotten gun runners. And so how can people protect themselves if government is paying leave service to sincerity about securing them? These people have everything or how are willing to protect themselves, have done a lot to protect themselves, but many of them end up landing in jail, in police cells for months and sometimes almost a year being accused for a crime they never commit. Just their crime is that they want to protect themselves, they want to defend their territory, they want to ensure that they protect their land, they want to ensure that nothing bad happens to them. So I'm really sad, I'm disappointed I was in southern Kaduna this morning. I felt really bad because why on earth can we continue like this? And we have a government put in place, we have security agencies, but I tell you when you drive around the roads, you see many of them and you ask yourself, is this just a patrol and collate offering? Not really about protecting and securing the people. What kind of a government do we have? What kind of leaders do we have? So it is time for people to protect themselves. People have always been willing to protect themselves, but will government really allow them to protect themselves? When they come out, they will just come home with some kind of phony charges on them, lock them up. That year if you are young, the only son of your father, you will not farm on the year you will be in jail because probably they caught you with daggers. I know cases of young men who came out and pursue killers like this, only to be coming back and find security men have arrived and they arrest them to be the killers, where the killers have gone and hidden. So what do you expect them to be able to do? All right, so back to you, Mr Jonathan. Do you think this is a kind of a formal strategy to scare the people from exercising their rights ahead of the 2023 elections? Yeah, I'll say so already. If you look at what is happening carefully, you will see that in the southern part of Kaduna state, during the Christmas season and the new year, that is the time that everybody goes home, families go home from the cities and they converge to celebrate the Christmas and the new year and that's when they celebrate cultural festivals. And so it is very timely and then we are moving towards the general elections that comes up in February. And so we have had this experience where we are beginning to think that the elections in Kaduna state may be isolated, I mean areas that you know are for where elections may not be won by a particular political party is likely that the elections will be lifted and isolated and conducted in another time. So local governments that are not favorable to a particular political party may be isolated. That is what we are suspected. Back to you Reverend Ayyab, what do you think is taking the government really this long to put an end to this situation especially in the northern parts of the country? What do you think is taking them long and even previous acts have actually been swept under the carpet? The governor has actually come out to give out relief materials to the victims, but is this the end to the situation? I'm not sure that is what the people want, the people want security, the people want protection, the people want to feel the impact of government and the best the government can give them is just to secure them. If the government secure them they will go to their farm, if the government secure them they will do their legitimate business, end a living and send their children to school. Unfortunately government have not been able to do that because in the beginning government came with pretence. In fact it was a government in Kaduna state took a very dangerous step by beginning to even aid and shield those who were killing our citizens, by actually coming out to speak in favor of those who were killing and destroying our cities. The government of Kaduna state were not honest but was not honest to the citizens in speaking and condemning the attack and even coming out to go after the criminals. The fact about criminals in Kaduna state seems to have had a field day, they were having a field day and the government now turned and was attacking stakeholders who were calling for security, who were calling for protection, who were calling to the end of this evil that barbaric hand that was going on. The government was taking all her energy and resources, attacking them, calling them names instead of going after criminals. Criminals that are supposed to be on the run were actually just watching how government is even fighting for them. The government was saying when we went fighting with them before the mayor for that government made a mistake of turning a given past citizen, accusing people who just cry out because of what they are seeing, who just cry out because of the pain that is going on in their community. So the criminals felt, oh, this government will be siding us and continue to advance, advance, advance and they have advanced and gathered strength, they have completely taken over so many places and now it's even difficult for the government to come. So if the government comes out now and even turn them, they will just laugh at the government because the time government supposed to go after them, government will not go after them and allow them to grow wings and become very strong. Government was dealing with them with some kind of kid blows or rhetoric that could not even kill a fly. Now they have become strong, now they have mastered the terrain and they are causing more harm. So if you even speak against them, you get a lot of government, instead of government going after them. I felt government didn't do that too. Another thing government didn't do right is because she never engaged stakeholders in finding a solution. She came with, I know everything, I can do everything. Unfortunately security is not about you, no everything. Security is everybody's business. Security is all inclusive. You don't fight security by just talking on the media, by shouting on people, you fight security by addressing what are the issues, reaching out and let people basically experience the presence of government in their mix. But that is not what is happening in South Africa. So if people of South Africa are really sad because the way and manner government is treating us to not show that we belong. And it is also not in South Africa alone, but going to many other parts of Northern Nigeria. When Boko Haram started, many Northern Elders came out, were even attacking the then leadership of Nigeria as if it were the leadership versus them. Not knowing that these people were terribly criminals that would cost pens to everybody. Boko Haram grew wings and continued to attack every part until they moved and started attacking Abuja. Now it became an everybody's problem. That is the kind of situation and that's the way our government has always treated insecurity. Instead of going after criminals and showing them that we have a government that has taken us, that she would defend and protect citizens, government seems to be playing game with the matter until it is out of hand. Well, finally, before I let you both go, I need to ask what advice do you have for people living in these communities on self-protection? Really, I wouldn't have to wait until I've been attacked in my own. I would also ask the same question to Mr. Jonathan. Wherever I am, let's see what you have to say. Yeah, I always tell the people not to run, not to give in and stand up and defend their territory. Whatever may be the reason that these criminals, these terrorists are terrorizing the people, they should know that there are people in that community. But I haven't said that there's a caveat. When you know the kind of sophisticated weapon that these people come with, whatever form of courage you have, when they open fire and you begin to hear the sound, not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, you may not be able to stand them. And that's where we still come back to government and say, where is our government? All right. Thank you very much. Joseph Ayub is the chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria. And fortunately, we lost the former president, Sauden Kaduna People's Union, Juneteh Nashake. It's so good to have you tonight. Thank you so much for joining us on the news. Thank you too for having me. I appreciate it. Notified about fresh news updates