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Plateau Killings: Death Toll Hits 52 as More Corpses Are Recovered

*Government says suspects arrested 

*Atiku blames killings across Nigeria on failed security architecture

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

Death toll from the massive attacks launched on some communities in Bokkos Local Government Area (LGA) of Plateau State on Wednesday night has risen to 52.

This followed the recovery of more corpses by search teams after combing nearby bushes for missing persons.

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar blamed the killings on what he described as the failure of President Bola Tinubu’s security architecture, noting that killings had become widespread across the country with many incidents unreported.

Also, a former member of the House of Representatives from Plateau State, Dachung Bagos, called for concerted efforts to check the killings and condemned it as babaric. He however called in National Assembly to expedite action in creating community police to secure vulnerable places.

Gunmen had on Wednesday night attacked Mangor, Tamiso, Daffo, Manguna, Hurti, and Tadai communities of Bokkos LGA in which 10 were reported to have been killed.

Chairman, Bokkos Cultural Development Council (BCDC), Farmasum Fuddang confirmed the rise in the death toll yesterday.

 He said aside from the 31 corpses that were given mass burial on Thursday night, five corpses of children killed were burnt to ashes at Hurti, while 11 other corpses were recovered from Ruwi village, four from Manguna village, and one from Dafo village.

 Meanwhile, the Plateau State government has said some suspects have been arrested in connection with the killings.

The Commissioner of Information and Communication, Hon Joyce Ramnap, in a statement confirmed that some arrests have been made in connection with the attacks.

She said Governor Caleb Mutfwang and his administration remain fully committed to ensuring the safety and security of all Plateau residents.

The statement added that, “Security agencies have deployed to dominate the villages to ensure normalcy returns at the shortest possible time. Additionally, important arrests have been made by the security agencies and this will hopefully help in stemming the tide of this ugly situation.

“We strongly urge citizens to exercise restraint and refrain from taking the law into their own hands.”

She also called on residents to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities to the relevant security agencies, adding that citizens must actively cooperate with law enforcement agents to facilitate the identification and apprehension of those responsible for the heinous acts.

She said that the Governor has deployed strategic measures to enhance intelligence gathering, surveillance, and rapid response mechanisms in collaboration with security operatives.

“In addition we call on religious, traditional, and community leaders to reinforce the message of peace, unity, and lawful engagement.

 “Government remains resolute in its commitment to upholding law and order and will not relent in its pursuit of justice against those who seek to destabilize our communities.

“Residents are encouraged to remain law-abiding, support security efforts, and utilise official channels for security concerns.,”

Weighing in on the massacre, Atiku wrote: “The failure of Bola Tinubu’s security architecture has now become an endemic nationwide phenomenon with repeated killings, more of which do not even make the headlines.

“Nigerians are now being forced to get used to such news of wanton killings, and I again offer my condolences to the bereaved communities of Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State and the affected families.”

He urged Tinubu to reconfigure security architecture to meet the needs of protecting the lives and properties of Nigerians.

Also, commenting on the killings, a former member of the  House of Representatives, Bagos condemned the killing of 12 persons by suspected herders in Bokkos local government area of Plateau state.

Bagos, who was the Chairman House Committee on Science and Technology, therefore, called on the National Assembly to expedite action on the creation of state police to enable state governments and local communities to take care of their security needs.

The former lawmaker in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dafwam Yaks urged local communities to unite in their efforts to protect one another.

He said: “Expressed deep sorrow and condemnation over the ongoing killings in Bokkos, particularly regarding the recent tragic attacks in Ruwi village, which resulted in the deaths of not less than 12 innocent individuals.

“Urge the federal government to intensify efforts to ensure the safety and security of citizens in Plateau state, acknowledging the urgent need for adequate policing and protection.

“He also called on the National Assembly to hasten the enactment of State Police Law to enable state government and local communities to take charge of its security.”

The former lawmaker also commiserated with the families affected by this senseless loss, which has left lasting scars on the community and beyond.

​  

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     The simultaneous absence of a country’s president and vice president from national territory is risky, argues KABIR ADAMU

    In the theatre of statecraft, symbolism and prudence often carry as much weight as written law. One such matter of high symbolic and practical consequence—yet often overlooked—is the simultaneous absence of a country’s President and Vice President from national territory. While few constitutions outright prohibit this occurrence, political wisdom and national security imperatives argue strongly against it.

    At a time when global volatility, transnational threats, and domestic uncertainties are constant companions, the need for leadership continuity has never been more critical. When both the President and Vice President—or their equivalents—are out of the country at the same time, it sends a troubling signal: that the cockpit of the state is temporarily unmanned.

     The most immediate concern is the risk of a leadership vacuum in the event of an emergency. Natural disasters, civil unrest, military crises, or even economic shocks do not wait for leaders to return from international engagements. If both the President and Vice President are abroad—especially without formally transferring power to another official—critical decision-making can be delayed or mired in constitutional ambiguity.

    In countries where the line of succession is unclear or politically contested, this scenario could spiral into a crisis of legitimacy. Even where succession plans are well established, the optics of absentee leadership during a national emergency can erode public trust.

    National security is another central concern. In unstable environments, or regions experiencing rising terrorism, insurgency, or geopolitical tension, the simultaneous absence of the top two leaders may be interpreted by hostile actors as a window of opportunity. The risk is not merely theoretical: history is replete with moments when opportunistic moves by adversaries were timed with perceived political or institutional weakness.

    Even in more stable democracies, security protocols often dictate that the President and Vice President avoid traveling on the same aircraft—just in case. It is a principle of continuity of government that has long guided policy in countries like the United States. Such prudence should be universal.

     There are also political costs. In democracies especially, perception is policy. When citizens face hardship—whether economic, social, or security-related—the image of both leaders abroad can be politically tone-deaf. Opposition figures are quick to pounce, spinning absence into apathy. At worst, it fosters a dangerous sense of neglect among the governed.

    Indeed, travel diplomacy has its place, and leaders must engage the world. But leadership also requires presence—not just in policy, but in geography. Where one is physically present often says more than what is written in any communique.

    The fact that many constitutions are silent on this issue does not make it insignificant. In practice, many nations observe informal but well-respected traditions: ensuring that either the President or Vice President remains in the country at all times. These norms are born not of legal necessity but of hard-earned political experience. They reflect an understanding that in governance, continuity is not merely a bureaucratic formality—it is the bedrock of stability.

    Nigeria, for instance, does not constitutionally forbid simultaneous travel by its top leaders. But the practice is avoided more often than not, precisely because it risks undermining institutional confidence in a country already grappling with complex security and governance challenges. Likewise, in Kenya, the President and Deputy President typically stagger their travel schedules. In France and India, careful coordination between heads of state and government ensures constant presence at the helm.

    In an era of rising political uncertainty and asymmetric threats, countries would do well to move from informal convention to formalized protocol. Whether through executive guidelines, legislative frameworks, or constitutional amendments, a clear rule that ensures leadership presence on home soil at all times would strengthen governance and bolster national resilience.

    Ultimately, the question is not simply about where a leader travels—but about the architecture of trust between the state and its people. In governance, presence is power. And in times of uncertainty, even symbolic absence can be a dangerous luxury.

    Dr Adamu is CEO of Beacon Security and Intelligence Limited, an Abuja based Security Risk Management and Intelligence firm with presence in several African countries

    ​  

     The simultaneous absence of a country’s president and vice president from national territory is risky, argues KABIR ADAMU In the theatre of statecraft, symbolism and prudence often carry as much weight as written law. One

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    AKINBORO AND SUBSERVIENT FEDERALISM

    AKINBORO AND SUBSERVIENT FEDERALISM

    The National Assembly should act in the best interest of the Federation by resolving conflicting constitutional issues on federalism, writes EKPA STANLEY EKPA

    Section 1 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria refers Nigeria as a Federal Republic. A federal system, as K.C Wheare posits, reflects a constitutional arrangement where people are prepared to give up only limited powers while retaining other limited powers; both sets of powers being exercised by coordinate authorities. With the exception of Major-General J.T.U Ironsi who made a proclamation for a unitary government, all other military governments, often prone to suspending and modifying the constitution by their fiat through decrees, surprisingly never attempted to modify the constitutional arrangement of federalism in Nigeria, thereby referring to their governments as the “Federal Military Government”. This leaves constitutional scholars with the curiosity of the significance of the phenomenon of federalism to Nigeria’s productivity and shared prosperity, particularly with the “unitary-federalism” currently being practiced in Nigeria. Perhaps, it is on this background that lawyers gathered last week, as the Eastern Bar Forum held its colloquium on “federalism and state legislative powers” in Abakaliki. The colloquium reviewed concurrent legislative matters from a sub-national perspective. 

    The colloquium consensus was that the constitution’s role in outlining the areas of intersection between different strata, as well as areas where one stratum takes precedence over the other, must constantly be a “process of bringing about a dynamic equilibrium between centrifugal and centripetal forces in a society”, as Akande observed. I find Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro SAN’s points of law on the imbalances of Nigeria’s federalism and his recommendations thereof quite pragmatic in solving our constitutional crisis on federalism. Perhaps, influenced by his decades as a prolific lawyer, Akinboro’s focus on Section 4 of the 1999 Constitution gives a legal leaning for restructuring Nigeria. He contends that while the ‘inconsistency clause’ in the constitution, as reflected by section 4(5) to the extent that “if any Law enacted by the House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly made by the National Assembly, the law made by the National Assembly shall prevail, and that other law shall to the extent of the inconsistency be void”, may seem good for constitutional certainty and operational hierarchy, it fails the original intendment of the essence of federalism, which according to section 4(7) of the 1999 Constitution, seeks to balance the constitutional power sharing system, by ensuring that the State House of Assembly “have power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the State or any part thereof”. 

    The federal dominance and legislative conflict arising from the imbalance in the constitutional power sharing system, Akinboro opined, is further complicated by the decision of the court in Niwa & Ors v. Laswa & Ors, where the court held that where both the National Assembly and a State House of Assembly enacts laws on the same subject, federal legislation must take precedence, and states are bound to comply. Clearly, this legal principle limits the autonomy of state governments, and should the fabrics of our federalism allow states to be subservient to the federal government, then our version of federalism runs contrary to the ideals of federalism as espoused by the Supreme Court of the United States of America in Indian Motorcycle Co. v. US, that in a federation, “neither state nor central government may exercise its power in such a manner as, without constitutional sanction, to interfere with or to impair unduly the exercise by the other of its authority.” 

    In the face of prevailing power play and exercise of constitutional powers between the federal government and some federating states, particularly in Rivers State, the current constitutional amendment committees of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, must bear in mind Professor Ben Nwabueze’s outlined characteristics of federalism, as “an association between governments rather than between geographical entities comprising different people; each level of government should enjoy a separate and independent existence in which one is not subject to the control of the other, that is, autonomy; there should be safeguards that ensure mutual non-interference in the exercise of allotted powers; each regional or state government should have equal powers in its relations to the central government..”. 

    As recommended by the Life Bencher, Olumuyiwa Akinboro, to achieve a “truly functional federal system, Nigeria must implement key legal and constitutional reforms that strengthen state autonomy; we must reevaluate fiscal federalism to empower states with increased authority over their internally generated revenue and resources management, thereby alleviating their excessive dependence on federal allocations.” To foster a more effective and equitable federal structure, the learned Silk’s conclusion and call to constitutionally “clarify the delineation of legislative authority, and empower states to take lead in security and other critical development initiatives”, will clearly help create a constitutional balance where federal and state governments are coordinating partners in “ensuring that federalism in Nigeria transcends constitutional rhetoric and manifests as a functional reality.” 

    More importantly, if the “bedrock of a federation is in each tier of government being a master in its own domain”, as held by the Supreme Court in Nkwocha v. Governor of Anambra, it suffices that the National Assembly in executing its duties under Section 9 of the Constitution, must act in the best interest of the Federation, and not just the federal government, by resolving our conflicting constitutional issues on federalism, such as resource control, overlapping jurisdictions, security sector and state policing, local government autonomy, general structure of government, among others, through the ongoing constitutional amendment process. While no country has a perfect system of government, we must constantly construct a system that propels us to a more perfect country, towards better humans, and to forge the greatest amount of good for the majority of Nigerians. 

     Ekpa, Executive Director, Call a Lawyer, wrote via ekpastanleyekpa@gmail.com

    ​  

    The National Assembly should act in the best interest of the Federation by resolving conflicting constitutional issues on federalism, writes EKPA STANLEY EKPA Section 1 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of

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