April 29, (THEWILL) — President Bola Tinubu has challenged Plateau State’s political, traditional, religious and community leaders to take responsibility for ending decades of recurring violence in the state, urging them to confront unresolved ethnic, religious and communal divisions that have fuelled repeated killings and instability.
The President issued the charge on Tuesday during a high-level interactive session with a 32-member Plateau delegation at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where the Federal Government also announced the approval of ₦2 billion relief support for victims of the March 29 attacks in Angwan Rukuba, Jos North Local Government Area.
The meeting, which lasted nearly three hours, brought together Governor Caleb Mutfwang, former governors Simon Lalong, Jonah Jang, Joshua Dariye and Fidelis Tapgun, APC National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda, traditional rulers, lawmakers, Christian and Muslim leaders, youth representatives and senior retired military officers.
A statement signed on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that the gathering followed President Tinubu’s earlier promise during his condolence visit to Plateau after the March violence that claimed several lives and displaced residents.
Speaking at the session, Tinubu said Plateau’s recurring crises could no longer be treated as isolated security incidents, insisting that leaders in the state must address the deeper political, ethnic and social tensions driving the violence.
“No protocols, no hindrances, we are here to speak our minds and find a permanent solution to a recurring conflict and chaos. I have heard the leaders. Everybody here is seeking peace. How do we chart our path to that peace?” the President said.
Tinubu urged the delegation to return home with a renewed commitment to reconciliation, tolerance and justice, warning against the manipulation of ethnic and religious sentiments for political or violent purposes.
“Let us first of all accept one resolution – tolerance for every inhabitant. If people are being recruited to provoke anger, conflict and killings, it is you, the leaders, that should first of all examine yourselves”, he declared.
In a significant directive, the President instructed Plateau leaders to revisit previous government White Papers, reports and gazettes on the state’s crises and agree on practical measures for implementation.
“As leaders, you must go back home, summon a leadership meeting among yourselves, take the gazette, review the previous recommendations and agree to implement the White Paper. Bring to my attention any knotty issue that may arise and bring up an implementable resolution”, Tinubu stated.
The President said the endless cycle of attacks had created thousands of widows, widowers and orphans, stressing that sustainable peace must become a collective responsibility.
“To stop creating orphans, widows and widowers, there must be an enduring peace in the state”, he said.
Tinubu also urged Governor Caleb Mutfwang to utilise the experience and influence of elder statesmen and community leaders across political and religious divides to build lasting harmony in Plateau.
He further directed the state government to identify and expose individuals sponsoring violence and communal unrest so they could face prosecution.
At the meeting, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Mohammed Dorro, announced that President Tinubu had approved ₦2 billion in relief intervention for victims affected by the March 29 attacks.
The intervention is expected to support displaced families, rehabilitation efforts and humanitarian recovery programmes in affected communities.
In his remarks, Governor Mutfwang described the meeting as a major turning point in Plateau’s search for peace, noting that it was the first time all former governors of the state had gathered together for such a strategic engagement.
“Our coming here today shows that there is a renewed spirit on the Plateau; that we want to be together. We are determined more than ever to close all our gaps, ensure that we rise above all the divides of religion and ethnicity, and build a state we can all be proud of”, the governor said.
He acknowledged the enormous economic and social losses the state had suffered over decades of violence and commended Tinubu for creating what he described as a new atmosphere of unity and reconciliation.
“A lot has been lost over the decades that we want to recover. We want to thank you for your leadership that has engendered this new spirit of unity”, Mutfwang added.
The governor pledged that Plateau leaders would build on the momentum generated by the Abuja meeting to foster peace, economic recovery and social cohesion.
“One of the things that we are determined to look at aggressively is how to turn conflict into profit by making sure that, under your leadership, we bring our people out of the shackles of poverty”, he said.
The Gbong Gwon Jos, HRM Da Jacob Gyang Buba, also commended President Tinubu for what he described as decisive leadership and concern for Plateau people.
The royal father called for increased deployment of security personnel, installation of CCTV surveillance infrastructure and urgent consideration for state police as part of broader security reforms.
He further appealed for federal support to enable internally displaced persons return to their ancestral communities before the peak of the farming season.
The monarch praised First Lady Oluremi Tinubu for repeatedly visiting Plateau with relief materials following recent attacks.
Throughout the meeting, delegates repeatedly stressed that sincerity, accountability and justice would be essential to achieving lasting peace in the state.
Former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and current lawmaker, Idris Wase, highlighted the role of drug abuse in worsening insecurity among youths and called for strict enforcement of the law against criminal elements.
Christian and Muslim youth representatives also pledged to work together to strengthen peaceful coexistence and support ongoing reconciliation efforts.
The meeting represented one of the most comprehensive engagements yet between the Federal Government and Plateau stakeholders over the state’s prolonged security crisis, with participants expressing cautious optimism that the renewed unity among leaders could finally help reverse years of bloodshed and division.
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