Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang has convened an enlarged emergency stakeholders’ meeting to address the worsening security situation in the state and renew efforts to find lasting solutions to the persistent attacks on rural communities.
The meeting, held in Jos, brought together an array of distinguished Plateau citizens, including former Governors, serving and former Senators, current and former Members of the House of Representatives, former Ministers, traditional rulers, religious leaders from Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI) and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and other key stakeholders.
The governor, while addressing the gathering at the Banquet Hall, New Government House Jos, decried the pattern of violent attacks which, according to him, have persisted for over two decades with the same sinister objective: the annihilation of defenceless communities.
He pointed out that the orchestrated violence in Plateau State predates his administration and those of his predecessors, Sen. Joshua Chibi Dariye, Sen. Jonah David Jang, and Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong stressed that the time had come for Plateau people to rise above political, ethnic, and religious divides to end the gruesome killings of innocent citizens once and for all.
The governor dismissed the long-standing narrative that the attacks were mere herder-farmer clashes, describing them instead as acts of genocide with clear land-grabbing motives.
He lamented that several local government areas, including Wase, Kanam, Mangu, Bokkos, Barkin-Ladi, Riyom, Bassa, and parts of Jos South, have suffered repeated and brutal assaults over the years, leading to several losses of lives and property.
Governor Mutfwang reiterated that peace and security remain his administration’s cardinal focus. He affirmed his commitment to unlocking Plateau State’s full potential and breaking the cycle of poverty that has hindered development and devalued the lives of its people.
“Let me especially thank members of the National Assembly for honouring this invitation. Your presence today shows that you are true sons and daughters of Plateau. This gathering has become a necessity. At the last count, we have lost countless lives. This crisis has deeply disturbed me, and it has also disturbed
Mr. President, who personally reached out to me for a briefing. Since then, we’ve been working around the clock,” he stated.
Throwing more light on the security breakdown across the state, the governor noted that no senatorial district has been spared, from kidnappings in Shendam and Kanke to terror cells operating in Kanam and Wase. He warned that criminals have exploited a weakened state capacity and growing communal disunity.
“How can bandits occupy the Wase grazing reserve, and someone still calls that a clash? When gunmen attack defenceless communities on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, what kind of clash is that?” he asked rhetorically.
Governor Mutfwang urged Plateau’s diverse ethnic and religious communities to unite in confronting the crisis and cautioned against politicising the bloodshed or adopting an every-man-for-himself attitude.
“When this crisis began, it was viewed as a Tarok problem.
Then it was seen as a Berom issue. No one is spared today, but we still behave like it’s not our collective concern. Let us preserve this land so that future generations can inherit a Plateau we can all be proud of,” he said.
“I didn’t come into office just to govern. I came to break the cycle of poverty and elevate our people into prosperity. But we can’t achieve that without confronting and taming the elephant in the room.”
Governor Mutfwang reaffirmed his commitment to working with all Plateau citizens, irrespective of political affiliation, to forge a united, sustainable path toward peace and development.
“I have no other vested interest than to ensure that not an inch of this land that God gave our forefathers is lost. Let us reclaim, preserve, and nurture it for generations to come. I stand before you today not as a master, but as a servant to push your collective agenda: the agenda of Plateau.”
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