President Bola Tinubu has promised to deploy the full instruments of federal power against any persons identified as instigating or sustaining the recurring violence in Plateau State.
He vowed that once troublemakers and provocateurs are identified, the government will act decisively against them.
The president also approved N2 billion in humanitarian funds for the victims of the March 29 incident in Angwan Rukuba, Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State.
The president made this statement on Tuesday evening when meeting with state leaders and stakeholders, and the State House Media Office sent visuals to our correspondent on Wednesday.
The event, which ended at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, included Governor Caleb Mutfwang and all living previous governors of Plateau State, including Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress.
Addressing the delegation, Tinubu stated, “No protocols, no obstacles; we are here to speak our minds and find a permanent solution to a recurring conflict and chaos.”
“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 instructed the governor to identify and name provocateurs so that they may face the full force of the law.
He also urged Plateau’s officials to prioritize justice, fairness, and ethnic unity in the state’s peace-building efforts.
“If you identify and you know the names of troublemakers, agents provocateurs who want to continue killing or instigate killing, let us know.
“We will use the instrument of office to deal with them.”
Tinubu held long, closed-door talks with a delegation from Plateau State led by the governor.
The delegation had waited several hours at the villa before finally gaining access to meet the president.
Tinubu praised the newly formed peace committee of past governors, tasked with examining existing white papers on the state’s conflict.
He also instructed them to return with a consolidated set of suggestions for government action, emphasizing that the group would serve as the principal interface for the peace process moving forward.
The president said, “You are going to work as a committee. Thank God all the previous governors, former governors, are alive, and you are here.”
He charged the group to operate with urgency and flexibility, dissolving previously constituted government committees if necessary.
“Call one another. Ignore the governor’s committee if you have to, or incorporate them. Take that white paper, go through it among yourselves, and agree to implement it.
“If the ones you have chosen before now are not working, you have to mix and amend membership.
“Forget those committees you mentioned to me; if it’s not working, it’s not working. Consider this group as the committee until we find a lasting solution,” he said.
Tinubu renewed his push for state police, describing it as the most relevant solution to Plateau’s peculiar security challenge.
He noted, “Through the legislators who are here, we are going to work together to establish state police on a national scale.
“I believe that once we have a state police, enforcement of laws will take care of some of these problems for us.
“We must stop creating widows, widowers, and orphans. There must be peace.”
Tinubu also advocated for structural changes to the state’s governance architecture, instructing the Plateau peace committee to enhance non-indigenous recruitment into government as a confidence-building tool.
“You have to recruit more from non-indigenous communities into your government,” he said, adding that the federal government was prepared to co-fund radio jingles and public campaigns against discrimination, division, and conflict if resources were required.
Speaking at the meeting, the governor acknowledged the historic aspect of the event, stating that the presence of all surviving previous governors of the state in one place had never occurred before.
He said, “The coming together of the former governors has never happened before.
“This is the first time it is happening, and I believe that is a step we can build upon.
“Since we have closed the political space, I am sure some of the issues that have been politicized have been narrowed out, and we will be able to move together as brothers.”
Mutfwang pledged the state’s support for the peace initiative and emphasized the historic significance of gathering all former governors of the state in one room.
“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,” Mutfwang said.
He also stated that the state was “determined to look aggressively at how to turn conflict into profit” by lifting its people out of poverty under Tinubu’s leadership.
Tinubu’s remarks on state police followed an earlier request made directly by the Gbong Gwom, Da Jacob Gyang Buba, who informed the president that security services sent to the state required more personnel and better equipment to deal with the magnitude of violence.
“At a time when we thought we would overcome our challenges, these renewed attacks have alerted us to the fact that we have a lot to do,” the traditional ruler said.
He also reminded Tinubu of the pledge he made during his April 2 visit to install over 5,000 AI-enabled security cameras around the state, pushing him to keep it.
The monarch urged federal assistance to facilitate the return of internally displaced people to their ancestral homes ahead of the rainy season and praised the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, for visiting the state twice with relief supplies following the security events.
Dr. Bernard Doro, minister of humanitarian affairs and poverty reduction, gave data in response to the president’s mandate for the victims.
Tinubu had ordered Doro in the town hall to compile quantifiable data on victims and their losses in order to support a government compensation intervention.
In a statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, the minister said that the president has approved N2 billion for the victims of the attacks.
The statement read, “At the interactive session, which lasted about three hours, the minister of humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation, Dr. Mohammed Doro, announced that President Tinubu had approved N2bn in relief support for victims of the March 29 attack in Angwa Rukuba.”
The decision fulfills a pledge made by the president during his emergency visit to Jos on April 2, days after gunmen assaulted residents of Angwan Rukuba as they returned from Palm Sunday church services, killing more than 27 people.
Former Deputy Speaker Idris Wase, in his presentation, emphasized the importance of law enforcement and identified drug usage as a major driver of insecurity in the state.
The delegation included all living former governors of the state: Simon Lalong, Jonah Jang, Joshua Dariye, and Sir Fidelis Tapgun, as well as the Emir of Wase, Mohammed Haruna; the Gbong Gwon Jos, Da Jacob Gyang Buba; the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Dr. Dunka Gomwalk; Rear Admiral Samuel Atukum (retd.), former Military Governor; Air Marshal JD Wuyep (retd.), former Chief of Air Staff; former Deputy Governor and minister, Pauline Tallen; Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Naanlong Gapyil Daniel; APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda; and former Deputy Speaker and current House of Representatives member, Idris Wase.
