Plateau Killings: Mutfwang Briefs Tinubu, Labels Attack ‘Terrorism’

Plateau State govenor Caleb Mutfwang, on Wednesday briefed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the recent violent attack in Angwan Rukuba, Plateau State, describing the incident as “barbaric” and an act of terrorism.

Speaking to State House correspondents after the meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Mutfwang said the situation, which escalated on Sunday evening, has now been brought under control through coordinated efforts by security agencies.

According to him, “What happened on Sunday evening was quite unfortunate, but the situation has been brought under control now. We’ve been able to evacuate corpses to the mortuary, and some families have already buried their dead.”

He disclosed that a curfew was imposed in response to the crisis but was relaxed on Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. However, he noted that some individuals attempted to take advantage of the situation.

“This morning there were some looters who tried to disrupt the peace again, but I’m glad that the security forces working together were able to calm the situation as at 12 noon this afternoon. Presently, the situation is well under control,” the governor said.

Mutfwang explained that his meeting with the President was at the latter’s invitation and was aimed at providing a firsthand account of the incident, steps taken so far, and proposed measures going forward.

“The meeting was first of all for me to brief him firsthand about what actually happened, what are the steps we have taken, and to also offer suggestions on our plans going forward,” he said.

He revealed that immediately after the crisis, the state government convened a Security Council meeting where certain steps were agreed upon, adding that the President also agreed that those steps should be taken.

“I have been able to agree on certain steps that we need to take, and the President has agreed that those steps should be taken,” Mutfwang added.

The governor said the President commiserated with the people of Plateau State and is contemplating visiting the state.

“As a matter of fact, he’s contemplating coming to the state personally to commiserate with the people. It’s something that has touched him personally, and he wants to show the people his love and affection for them,” he said.

He further disclosed that the President has approved certain measures to be taken in conjunction with security forces.

“What I can assure you is that this has become a decisive turning point. Going forward, we’re going to see more proactive actions,” he said.

On the nature of the attack, the governor cautioned against attributing it to a single cause, noting that investigations are ongoing.

“In a crisis of this nature, you can’t reduce it to one reason. It’s a mixture of multiple reasons, and sometimes you can only deduce the actual reasons when you are able to get two groups of people — the victims and the attackers,” he explained.

He added that security agencies are yet to apprehend the perpetrators, making it difficult to determine their identities and motives.

“Unfortunately, we’ve not been able to lay hands on the attackers yet to know their identities and their motive,” he said.

Nonetheless, Mutfwang firmly described the violence as criminal and terror-driven.

“We are seeing this as an act of criminality. It’s barbaric. We condemn it. It’s an act of terrorism, because whatever religion you belong to, it does not give you any basis to come and do the kind of actions that were done on Sunday,” he stated.

The governor assured that authorities would treat the incident strictly as criminality and ensure such actions do not recur.

“We’re therefore hoping that going forward, we’ll deal with this as criminality and make sure that these kind of actions do not repeat themselves,” he added.