From Gyang Bere, Jos
On Sunday, July 31, Armageddon descended on Danda Chugwi community in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State. That day, bandits from the pit of hell shattered the arm of four-year-old David Pam with bullets when they invaded the community. They also killed his father, mother and four siblings during the invasion. Indeed, his entire family was wiped out by the assailants, leaving him in a pool of blood, crying helplessly in pain and sorrow.
Hours after the attack, David was rushed to Vom Christian Hospital, where his right arm was amputated after excessive bleeding.
Today, David, who cries profusely in the hospital due to pain, needs a lot of assistance to survive. He is left with his grandmother to cater for him in the hospital.
The medical superintendent of Vom Christian Hospital, Frederick Dachung, where the baby and the injured persons are receiving treatment, said David lost a lot of blood and needs assistance from the public to survive.
He said: “On Sunday night, around 11pm, two victims were brought to the hospital from Danda, the child is about four months old, who had a gunshot wound in his right arm, which was a traumatic amputation. The hand was just hanging and we had to completely amputate the arm.
“The child had blood that same night, he will need more blood and he is doing well, except that he will need to feed properly. The grandmother is currently with the child and we hope that many people will come with help for that child.”
A 45-year-old woman, Lyop Jah, who survived gunshots to her left arm, could not explain how she escaped death and attributed it to the mercy of God.
Lyop said she did not sight the bandits but only heard gunshots that inflicted wounds to her left arm. She is also at the Vom Christian Hospital, placed on antibiotics.
Another survivor, Bulus Pam, who escaped also by the whiskers, explained that the gunmen invaded the village at about 7.30pm and moved into their compound, where they forced themselves into the room of his younger brother and killed him along with his wife and four children.
Bulus said the deceased had taken dinner with his children and was preparing to go to bed when the killers visited the family. He explained that when he saw the strange people wearing black clothes and forcing their way into the room, he quickly left the compound and raised the alarm but they had no weapons to confront the killers.
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Plateau State chapter, Caleb Mutfwang, who visited the community and the injured persons in the hospital, sympathized with them and urged the security agencies to do justice by arresting the perpetrators.
Mutfwang, who was represented by Ngo Josephine Piyo, admonished the community to be watchful and work towards defending themselves, as government had failed in its constitutional responsibility of protecting life and property.
Mutfwang urged government to redouble efforts in providing security for the people and take practical steps by arresting and prosecuting the perpetrators of the evil act.
He presented funds for the treatment of the injured and gave food supplements to David, who is battling between life and death.
However, most residents of the area are yet to recover from the shock of the attack, which claimed seven members of the same household. In fact, they will not forget the bloody episode in a hurry.