Bloodbath On The Plateau

It is very unfortunate that a killing field is the catch-all phrase with which Plateau State is now easily described. And just when that description appears to cull the blood, the state lives up to it in spectacular fashion. This is unacceptable in a country with a government and the killings must stop. 

The Federal and Plateau State governments should take a hard look at the persistent destruction of lives and property on the Plateau with a view to putting a stop to it. A situation where a once serene and peaceful tourist destination has been turned into a killing field, is condemnable. 

The massacre in Plateau State has been going on for too long and has become almost intractable. Since March 2001, when the first major hostilities broke out, thousands of people have been killed and property worth billions destroyed. The socio-economic impact on the inhabitants has been enormously immeasurable. 

According to a report on Small Arms Survey released by Jana Krause as Geneva Declaration in June 2011, as many as 7, 000 people had been killed in Jos, Plateau State since 2001. This is horrendous and unacceptable. Not even in war-ravaged countries could such loss of lives within that time-frame have been recorded without an international uproar. 

The magnitude and endurance of the carnage is an indictment of both the Federal and Plateau State governments. All efforts by both governments have been futile. Somehow, government appears overwhelmed and helpless on how to manage the situation. But there should be no relenting in effort until peace is restored on the Plateau.

Between 1994 and 2010, no less than five committees have been set up by government to proffer a lasting solution to the ethnic conflict on the Plateau without respite. The committees include the Justice Aribiton Fiberisima Commission of Inquiry into the April 12, 1994 crisis in the Jos metropolis; Justice Niki Tobi Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the Civil Disturbances in Jos and its environs of September 2001; Prince Bola Ajibola Commission of Inquiry into the November 2008 Crisis; the Abisoye Panel of Inquiry of 2009 and the Solomon Lar Presidential Administrative Panel of 2010. Thereafter, the failure to implement the recommendations of the committees forced President Goodluck Jonathan to personally embark on a mission to reconcile the warring Hausa-Fulani and Berom ethnic groups.

But the president’s efforts hit the rocks following a disagreement by the major stakeholders over the implementation of the previous panel reports, which are considered critical towards achieving a lasting peace. Whereas the Berom ethnic group supported the implementation of the panel reports set up by both the Federal and Plateau State governments, the Hausa-Fulani opposed the implementation of all the past probe reports. That made the president’s exploratory meetings end in deadlock. There has been no further attempt ever since to reopen the peace talks. And the killings go on.

It is important at this juncture to situate the Jos crisis in the proper context. Whereas, agitation over land resource control and political supremacy were at the root of the crisis, sheer criminality has become the order of the day. The bloodletting over land ownership should be addressed in the national context. That is one of the critical issues a national conference should deal with especially since Nigerians of different ethnic extractions still question their oneness.

Government should, however, implement the recommendations of the various panels set up on the crisis as this would go a long way to restore peace in the area. Finally, the Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang, should publicly show an appreciation of the enormity of the crisis facing his state and therefore appear, in reality and in symbolic terms, to give more attention to challenges facing the people of Plateau State.