Plateau State Christian Leaders Issued 10 Point Demands to President Tinubu, Says Killings on The Plateau, a Genocide

By Jerry Jatdul, Jos.

Sequel to the genocidal attacks on some communities of Barkin Ladi, Bokkos and Mangu Local Government Areas of plateau state on the Eve of Christmas 2023, which left no fewer than over Hundred of innocent persons gruesomely massacred in their homes by Fulani Militias, the Christians in the state has issued a Ten Points demands to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for perusal and urgent implementation.

The Christians body said “Enough Is Enough” as they can no longer stand aloof and watch their families been massacred on a daily basis, places of worship reduced to ashes, including their farm produce, and above all make them refugees in their respective communities and doing nothing to salvage the situation, the president should act , if not, as a body of Christ, they will be forced to defend themselves through any means.

The Christians issued the(10) points demands during a Peace Walk organized by ECWA President and Chairman Denominational Leaders on the Plateau Rev. Stephen Baba Panya at the Government House Little Rayfield of Jos South Local Government Area on Monday January 8th, 2024.

The Forum under the aegis of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Plateau State Chapter, said the entire Christian community in Plateau State once again condemns in the strongest terms the unprovoked, wicked, satanic and genocidal killings of innocent and harmless Christians on Christmas Eve in over 20 communities in Bokkos, Barkin Ladi Local Government Areas of Plateau State.

They said the timing of these killings on Christmas Eve and during Christmas celebrations which has shown that the attackers had clear intentions and objectives, which were to target Christian communities, take them unawares and inflict maximum casualty on them. Based on authenticated statistics released so far,

this is one of the deadliest and most devastating attacks on the Plateau.

The demands of the Christians which was contained in a speech by the president of ECWA Stephen Baba Panya and delivered on their behalf further said,

These attacks were not only Horrific and Reprehensible but Incomprehensible. For example, Veronica Malan, a nursing mother was shot through her stomach and the bullet pierced her abdomen and passed through the stomach and back of her 9-month-old baby boy, Godwin.

To ensure that they were both dead, they were slaughtered along with 23 others, mostly women in their hideout in Chirang, Mangur District. A three-year-old baby girl was shot point blank and still lies critically ill at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH). At the Mbong community, the charred bodies of a woman and her S children and relatives set ablaze by the terrorists lie in the ruins of their burnt bedroom.

Our Ten Points Demands to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is as follows:

We call for timely intervention in the provision of emergency relief in terms of food, water, toiletries, sleeping materials and other such necessities. We appreciate the directive given by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to relevant Federal government agencies such as NEMA to mobilise and provide succour to the victims. We also commend the great effort of His Excellency, Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang in not only outrightly condemning the attack, but also taking urgent concrete steps in providing food and other necessities to the

displaced survivors in the {DP camps.

We unequivocally and emphatically call for an end to these sustained attacks and killings on the Plateau and in Nigeria. We demand immediate justice for the innocent people of Bokkos, Mangu, Riyom, Bassa, Barkin Ladi and other affected communities.

We commend His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for condemning the dastardly attacks in totality and directing security agencies to go after the culprits and bring them to justice. We note with great encouragement and hope that this is a marked departure from the lacklustre response of the Presidency and the Federal Government during similar attacks in the past. We therefore cail on security agencies to align with this new mindset and ensure that the criminals responsible for these heinous attacks are apprehended, prosecuted and brought to justice.

We unanimously call on the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice as a matter of urgency, to initiate the process of officially proscribed the armed terrorist militias responsible for these mindless killings. They should be officially designated as terrorists. This will give the military the power to fully engage them as provided in the Terrorism Act of 2022. It is on record that in 2015, the Global Terrorism index (GTI) named the armed Fulani

militias as the fourth deadliest terror group in the world. Nigeria must urgently act and treat them as such while also engaging other West African countries, through ECOWAS, to do the same thing. A regional approach, consensus and action have become extremely imperative to deal with the menace of the Fulani militias.

We call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu through the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Barr. Caleb Muftwang, to provide adequate security for the 15,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Bokkos who are today located in various temporary Camps and houses of relatives.

All communities destroyed should be rebuilt and the displaced people relocated and resettled back in their ancestral homelands as soon as possible.

We call for an end to the intentional dispossession of land and the current land grabbing through militarization and the activities of these armed militias and bandits which have gone on for too long now in Plateau State. Records show that several indigenous villages have been over, the people displaced and some of these villages are currently being occupied by these armed militias.

This sad reality and social tragedy must change. The displaced people should be resettled back to their ancestral lands and given adequate security.

We demand an end to the intentional destruction of farm produce and cattle rustling which have become huge security issues. We urge His Excellency Governor Muftwang to look into this and find ways to tackle these issues once and for all. We also call for the construction of food barns which were burnt down with farm produce in the communities attacked. By implication, even if the survivors return to their communities, there would be no food left. Unless there is a timely intervention, the people will face hunger and starvation.

We strongly appeal to the Federal Government to establish the North Central Development Commission (NCDC). This has become necessary following the frequent attacks and wanton destruction of lives and properties across the zone in the last decade. We recall that the militancy in the Niger Delta led to the establishment of the Niger Delta Development Commission. Similarly, the Boko Haram insurgency in the North East has led to the establishment of the North East Development Commission.

Therefore, the massive and unrelenting destruction of lives and properties in the Savannah belt region of the Middle Belt, which has witnessed continuous attacks and killings in Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa, Niger States; and Southern Kaduna, make a strong case for the establishment of the North Central Development Commission (NCDC). This will help immensely in the rebuilding and rehabilitation process of the affected communities.

We call on the Federal government of Nigeria to direct the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to immediately commence the process of rebuilding the destroyed communities pending the establishment of the North Central Development Commission. A robust and comprehensive security architecture should be put in place to enable all displaced persons to return to their ancestral homes. We encourage the Federal government to solicit funding and other support from the AU, EU, and UN to provide massive humanitarian interventions as well as save the people from impending hunger due to the reality of food terrorism which has now become a potent weapon in the hands of the terrorists. 

We call for the release of all those alleged to have been arrested with legitimate self-defence implements such as Cutlasses, clubs, machetes, & and in the co . of protecting a. r communities in the aftermath of the attacks. Where such persons have been arrested as alleged, they should be immediately released because, it amounts to aggravating the pains of the people by security agencies who did not respond on time to protect the communities, to come belatedly and arrest those who are sacrificially and patriotically defending their communities from further attacks. 

The letter was handed to the governor of Plateau State Caleb Mutfwang for onward delivery to Mr. President. 

However, the death toll of the Christmas Eve attack has been alleged to have risen to over 200 souls lost.