Tinubu Determined to End Plateau Killings, Says Akpabio
Tinubu Determined to End Plateau Killings, Says Akpabio
Sunday Aborisade in Abuja
President Bola Tinubu is resolute about ending the years of bloodshed and violent crises that have plagued Plateau State, Senate President Godswill Akpabio has assured the people of the state, declaring that their security situation is now a top priority at the highest level of government.
Akpabio, who represented the president at a grand rally organised by the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Jos Polo Field over the weekend, said Tinubu had placed the search for a lasting peace on the Plateau at the centre of his national security strategy.
The Senate President addressed thousands of supporters who gathered to witness what party leaders described as one of the biggest political realignments in the state ahead of the 2027 elections.
In a statement issued by his media aide, Anietie Ekong, on Sunday, Akpabio told the crowd that the president was deeply troubled by the years of killings, displacements and social fractures that have shaped life in many Plateau communities.
He said: “Too many lives have been lost. Too many homes destroyed. The Plateau deserves peace, and anyone who wants to govern this state must be committed to peace. President Tinubu’s determination to end the killings is unwavering.”
The Senate President added that he felt personally distressed each time tragedy struck the state.
“I cry whenever anybody is killed on the Plateau. This state is yearning for peace, and President Tinubu will deliver peace to Plateau State,” he said, drawing applause from the crowd.
Although the rally was convened primarily to receive defectors from five opposition parties into the APC, Akpabio anchored his remarks on national stability, insisting that the security of lives and property remained the administration’s overriding priority.
He said the people of Plateau deserved to live without fear and assured them that the Federal Government’s commitment to ending the cycle of violence was total.
The event signalled a major political shift as several influential figures formally crossed over to the ruling party.
Among them were Senator Istifanus Gyang, who represented Plateau North in the ninth Senate; Latep Dabang, former director-general of the PDP’s 2023 campaign; Labour Party’s 2023 governorship candidate, Dr. Patrick Dakum; and former NNPP governorship contender, Alfred Dabwam.
Also joining the APC were three serving members of the House of Representatives, including Hon. Fom Dalyop (Riyom/Barkin Ladi), Hon. Ajang Alfred Ilya (Jos South/Jos East), and Hon. Daniel Asama Ago (Bassa/Jos North), as well as dozens of former legislators, political actors and grassroots influencers.
Akpabio described the influx of defectors as evidence that the APC had become the dominant political force in Plateau under the leadership of the party’s National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda.
According to him, “The calibre and spread of those joining the party reflected its growing strength.
“My ears have heard and my eyes have seen that from today the entire Plateau is APC. Come 2027, Plateau shall deliver the APC.”
He praised Tinubu for endorsing Yilwatda as National Chairman, describing him as “a man of valour, integrity and dignity”, whose emergence had reconfigured Plateau’s political landscape in favour of the ruling party.
“You can see that he has delivered Plateau State to APC before the elections,” Akpabio said.
The Senate President said the party’s renewed strength was bolstered by the combined leadership of the President and the National Chairman.
“When you are escorted by a lion like President Tinubu, you have nothing to fear,” he added.
Addressing the rally, Yilwatda said the mass defection marked the “final consolidation” of APC’s hold on Plateau State.
According to him, the political reality in the state had shifted decisively.
“With this structure, with this firepower, Plateau will deliver President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027. All three Senate seats will be APC. All federal and state positions will be APC. The people have spoken: APC or nothing,” he said.
He assured the newcomers of equal rights and privileges, urging them to see the APC as a platform open to all who wish to contribute to what he called a new political era in the state.
The rally drew several high-profile dignitaries, including Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Kalu; Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State; Governor Hyacinth Alia of Benue State; and Kogi State Deputy Governor, Salifu Joel, among other party leaders and stakeholders.
The event underscored both the shifting political tides in Plateau and President Tinubu’s push to stabilise a state long battered by violence, with Akpabio assuring the people that a decisive turning point was now within reach.
Sunday Aborisade in Abuja President Bola Tinubu is resolute about ending the years of bloodshed and violent crises that have plagued Plateau State, Senate President Godswill Akpabio has assured the
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