Ev. Ezekiel Dachomo, a preacher in Plateau State and senior cleric with the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), has mourned three young people reportedly killed in Rim community, Riyom Local Government Area of the state.
Dachomo expressed his grief in a post on X on Sunday, describing the deaths as a devastating loss to the affected families, the community and the Christian body.
The cleric said the victims were not merely statistics but sons and daughters, siblings, friends, worshippers and workers whose deaths had left their families and the wider community devastated.
“Rim Community in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State has been plunged into deep sorrow following the tragic loss of three young people whose lives touched their community and the Body of Christ,” he wrote.
Dachomo said the deaths had left families struggling to understand how ordinary hopes for the day could have suddenly ended in grief.
“In Rim today, people are crying. Some are asking, ‘Why did this happen?’ Others are asking, ‘Why our children?’ ‘Why must innocent young people continue to die?’ ‘When will this suffering end?’” he said.
The COCIN cleric said he was joining the affected families and the wider Rim community in mourning the victims, stressing that their contributions to the community and the Church should not be forgotten.
“Today, we cry with the families of these three young people. We mourn with Rim Community. We remember their contribution to the community and the Body of Christ, and we refuse to allow their lives to be reduced to mere statistics,” Dachomo said.
Offering comfort to the bereaved, Dachomo drew on biblical passages, quoting Matthew 5:4: “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”
He also cited Revelation 21:4, pointing to the Christian hope that death and suffering will not have the final word.
The cleric, however, used the tragedy to raise fresh concerns over the recurring violence affecting communities across Plateau State.
He called for an end to the violence and urged authorities and relevant stakeholders to pay greater attention to the suffering of residents who continue to live under the threat of attacks and loss of lives.
“How many more young lives must be lost before the cries of these communities are heard? How many mothers must weep? How many fathers must bury their children?” he asked.
Dachomo said the continued loss of young lives was not only a tragedy for individual families but also a painful blow to the wider community and the Body of Christ.
He prayed for comfort for the bereaved families and protection for residents still living in Rim community.
“Lord, remember Rim Community. Remember Plateau State. Comfort those who mourn, protect those who remain, and bring an end to the violence that continues to steal innocent lives,” Dachomo prayed.