The killings occurred on May 7 in Alakyo village, 18 kilometres outside the state capital, Lafia,
Justice Joseph Gbadeyan (rtd) on Thursday's sitting, stated that the Federal Government refused to arrest the alleged mastermind of the massacre, chief priest of the Ombatse cult group, Lega Agu, popularly called Baba Alakyo.
"It is the responsibility of the Federal Government to arrest the chief priest of the Ombatse cult group," Gbadeyan told the panel.
The chairman said the state government cannot be blamed as it has no constitutional backing to carry out the arrest, a sign that the panel's reports may totally exonerate the Al-Makura-led administration.
On its inauguration, Counsel to the Ombatse militia, accused of carrying out the killings, Zakaria Alumaga, has challenged the powers of the Commission to probe it.
Alumaga faulted the leadership of the Commission which was inaugurated in May, based on the penal code which was used to outlaw the group.
He raised a preliminary objection to enable the Commission decide "whether it was competent to adjudicate on some of the provisions contained in its terms of reference as regards the alleged proscription of the group by the Nasarawa state Government in 2012."
But the state government then, dismissed the objection as the State Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Innocent Lagi, saID "the commission is all about fact finding and not a Commission for legal interpretations."
Reacting to the latest position of the Commission of inquiry, Lagi lamented that the laws of the land do not empower the state government to effect such an arrest as being clamoured for by the populace.
He said documents at his disposal were classified and as such could not be used to prosecute those who killed the security operatives, hence their push to make the Commission declassify them in order to make arrests.
"If the state government says it has no powers to arrest the people behind such a heinous crime against the state and society at large, how did the police go to Alakyo in the first place? Under whose order did they go to Alakyo to be killed? a lawyer for one of the groups making submissions at the Commission asked.
"Al- Makura was a member of Ombatse," a member of the state house of assembly alleged in a chat with The Guardian. "We warned him earlier, but he was blind because of his mission to become governor, now he is governor but one thing is clear, the much needed change has come, but it is going with so many lives, so it is optional for the people of the state to decide whether to continues to die with change or otherwise," the legislator said.
Meanwhile, the Commission adjourned yesterday, Thursday to reconvene on Monday, which is the last day of its sitting.
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