Nation
Updated: Christian Leaders Plan Protest as Bandits Kill 40 in Fresh Plateau Attacks
Christian leaders in Plateau State have announced plans to stage a protest against the continued killings in the region, following fresh attacks that left over 40 villagers dead in Bassa communities in the early hours of Monday.
The attack took place at Zike community, Kimakpa in the Kwall district of Bassa.
According to a community leader, Wakili Tongwe, the invaders stormed the village in the early hours of Monday and shot sporadically at residents who were scampering for safety after hearing gunshots.
The community confirmed on the phone that a team of vigilantes, including himself and some security personnel, were on patrol in another community when the attackers invaded the village and started shooting.
According to him, the security personnel engaged the attackers and was successful in repelling the attackers, the damage had been done, with about thirty-six persons shot dead and four others dying later.
Some other residents were said to have sustained gunshot wounds and are receiving medical attention at the hospital.
Security agencies in the state are yet to release a statement on the attack, which is coming less than two weeks after fifty-two persons were killed in some communities of the Bokkos Local Government Area of the North-Central state.
This latest violence comes on the heels of a bloody weekend in Bokkos Local Government Area, where at least 10 people were killed. Just last week, over 52 people were reported dead in coordinated attacks across several communities in Bokkos.
Dr. Gideon ParaMallam, President of the Gideon and Funmi Peace Foundation and a member of the protest planning committee, confirmed the development.
According to ParaMallam, the upcoming demonstration, titled the “2nd Peace Walk Against Continuous Killings,” is a response to what he described as senseless and unprovoked attacks, aimed at demanding justice and security for affected communities.
“Yes, the protest walk will be held on Monday, April 21, 2025 (Easter Monday), at 9:00 am prompt,” he stated. “The Church on the Plateau, under the leadership of denominational leaders and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Plateau State chapter, calls on all Christians to arise once again in unity, grief, and righteous protest.”
He noted that between March 27 and April 2, nearly 80 people were killed in Bokkos LGA alone. The figure excludes those slain in Bassa and other parts of Nigeria.
“As a mark of honour for the dead and a cry for justice, the Church is organizing a second peace walk to demand an end to these continuous attacks in Plateau State and elsewhere,” ParaMallam said.
He urged Christians to show solidarity by dressing in black, red, or white as a visual statement of mourning, demand for justice, and commitment to peaceful resistance.
“We will gather at the PRTV Roundabout Junction in Jos and march to the New Government House in Little Rayfield, where we will lay our collective grief before President Bola Ahmed Tinubu through the Governor of Plateau State, Barrister Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang,” he added.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Plateau State Chapter, is spearheading the protest and has asked all churches to encourage members to wear black to services on Easter Sunday, April 20, and during the protest walk the following day.
“Black symbolizes mourning, red for an end to the killings, and white for peaceful resistance to impunity,” ParaMallam explained. “This protest is a call for peace, justice, and protection of every life on the Plateau and across Nigeria.”
Plateau State has, for several decades, been a hotbed of killings, with gunmen sacking entire communities. About 200 people were killed at Christmas 2023 celebrations during a bloody attack on a majority Christian community. In May last year, around 40 people were killed and homes torched in the town of Wase.
Experts blame the fight for resources between farmers and herders as a major cause of the attacks.
But the governor of the state, Caleb Muftwang, says there is more to the attacks.
“I can tell you in all honesty that I cannot find any explanation other than genocide sponsored by terrorists. The question is, who are the persons behind the organisers of this terrorism? This is what the security agencies must help us to unravel,” the governor said in a recent interview on Channels TV.
He said bandits have taken over 64 communities in the state.
“As I am talking to you, there are not less than 64 communities that have been taken over by bandits on the Plateau between Bokkos, Barkin Ladi, and Riyom local governments,” Muftwang said. “They have been taken over, renamed, and people are living there conveniently on lands they pushed people away to occupy.”
The Federal Government has been talking tough following the recent wave of attacks, vowing to flush out the assailants. But not much has been achieved.The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, “ordered the immediate and comprehensive deployment of police tactical assets to the affected areas of the state”.