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Tag: Plateau

  • JUST IN: Gunmen kill 30 in fresh Plateau attack despite curfew

    JUST IN: Gunmen kill 30 in fresh Plateau attack despite curfew

    No fewer than 30 persons were killed in Plateau State in the early hours of Wednesday by gunmen who attacked Kwahaslalek village, Mangu Local Government Area.

    The Nation reported Plateau Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, declared a 24-hour curfew on Mangu LGA on Tuesday.

    It was learnt that the victims, who were mostly women and children, had run to the house of a community leader in the area on Tuesday night for safety following an earlier unrest during the day in Mangu town before the gunmen surrounded them and killed all of them.

    Read Also: Storm in Plateau House of Assembly

    A community leader in the area, Mark Haruna, on Wednesday confirmed the death toll in Jos, the state capital.

    Haruna said, “What happened at Sabon Gari and Mangu town yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) was just a distraction so that the attention of the people will be shifted away from the villages.

    “For the second time, my village Kwahaslalek (behind NYSC camp) came under attack by gunmen yesterday (Tuesday)night. They came at about 12:30 am and killed over 25 people, mostly women and children.”

    Details shortly…

  • Storm in Plateau House of Assembly

    Storm in Plateau House of Assembly

    The political crisis in Plateau State took a new turn yesterday.

    The House of Assembly Speaker, Gabriel Dewan Kudangbena, insisted he would not recognise the 16 All Progressives Congress (APC) members yet.

    The 16 were beneficiaries of the Court of Appeal judgment which erroneously sacked their Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) counterparts over an intra-party affair.

    The APC lawmakers did not turn up yesterday, but their sacked PDP colleagues stormed the House.

    They were denied access to plenary following the Yuletide break.

    The Speaker said he would not allow any of the 16 lawmakers to resume until there is a clear interpretation of the Supreme Court judgment.

    While the ex-PDP lawmakers could not go beyond the Court of Appeal after their sack, Governor Caleb Mutfwang, whose election was also nullified, had it reversed by the Supreme Court.

    Relying on the Supreme Court judgment, the 16 former PDP lawmakers threatened to sit, which legal experts said was impossible because they were not parties to the Supreme Court case.

    As early as 5 am yesterday, armed policemen were deployed to the Old Government House in Jos, the temporary venue of the House, to prevent a breakdown of law and order.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted the Speaker as saying he was barred by a court order from recognising the 16 APC beneficiaries.

    Kudangbena, according to the NAN report, said he had a court order mandating him to recognise only eight members of the Assembly.

    According to him, the 16 sacked lawmakers, and the other 16 with certificates of return, were all laying claim to the seats.

    Kudangbena said: “At present, there are 32 members laying claim to the seats. 

    “Since the 32 members had their certificates of return and are laying claim to their mandates, it would be unlawful to admit them into the chambers.

    “For now, only eight members will be sitting. I have a court injunction restraining the House from inaugurating the 16 APC members.

    “Yes, they have their certificates of return issued to them by INEC, but they can’t be inaugurated until the final determination or vacation of the injunction.”

    The Speaker stressed he would await a court interpretation of the judgments.

    Read Also: EFCC to arraign ex- Anambra Gov Obiano over alleged N4bn fraud

    He said: “The house is in receipt of judgments from two courts: one from the Court of Appeal and another one from the Supreme Court.

    “You know I am a lawmaker; I can’t interpret the law. Therefore, I have to see full interpretations of these judgments before I know what to do.

    “So, for now, the Plateau State House of Assembly has only eight members whose seats are not in contest, and only the eight members are recognised by my leadership. 

    “The other 16 members will join us when the law is made clear.”

    Leader of the 16 former PDP lawmakers, Ishaku Maren from Bokkos Constituency, agreed with the Speaker on the need for an interpretation by the court.

    He said: “We agree with the position of the Speaker. We know the Assembly is law-abiding and has acted under the law.

    “And as a group, we are also law abiding; we are calm; we are organised and we accepted the stand of our Speaker.

    “We are ready to wait until the judgments are interpreted to give legitimacy to the House.”

    APC Publicity Secretary, Sylvanus Namang, said the 16 APC lawmakers were absent because the party advised them to stay away to avoid a clash.

    The party hailed security agencies for averting a breakdown of law and order at the resumed sitting.

    The sacked PDP lawmakers had trooped to the House with hundreds of their supporters.

    However, security agencies prevented them from gaining access.

  • ‘I have a court injunction to recognise only 8 members’ – Plateau speaker

    ‘I have a court injunction to recognise only 8 members’ – Plateau speaker

    The Speaker, Plateau State House of Assembly, Gabriel Dewan, says that he is in possession of a court injunction to recognise only eight members of the assembly.

    Dewan stated that the 16 sacked lawmakers, and the other 16 with certificates of return, were all laying claim to the seats.

    The speaker made the disclosure during plenary on Tuesday in Jos, following the resumption of the lawmakers’ long recess, after the Court of Appeal sacked 16 members elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the eight members gained access to the temporary premises of the assembly, but the others were denied entry.

    “At present, there are 32 members laying claim to the seats.

    “Since the 32 members had their certificates of return, and are laying claim to their mandates, it would be unlawful to admit them into the chambers.

    “For now, only eight members will be sitting. I have a court injunction restraining the House from inaugurating the 16 APC members.

    “Yes, they have their certificates of return issued to them by INEC, but they can’t be inaugurated until the final determination or vacation of the injunction,’’ he said.

    Read Also: BREAKING: Mutfwang imposes 24-hour curfew on Plateau council

    NAN reports that there was mild drama earlier on Tuesday, at Old Government Jos, the temporary venue of the assembly, after a police tear gas accidentally went off.

    The tear gas went off as police personnel were trying to stop supporters of the sacked members from gaining access to where the lawmakers were billed to sit.

    NAN also reports that the temporary assembly complex has been taken over by security personnel.

    (NAN)

  • We only have eight recognised members in Plateau Assembly – Speaker

    We only have eight recognised members in Plateau Assembly – Speaker

    Plateau House of Assembly speaker, Gabriel Dewan, revealed on Saturday that the Plateau Assembly only has eight lawmakers that he recognises.

    In an interview with reporters in Jos, Dewan revealed that the Appeal Court’s previous ruling had been overruled by the Supreme Court, the nation’s apex court.

    He: “As it stands now, only eight lawmakers are recognised as members of state the assembly”.

    Despite coming from the opposition party and a minority party, the Young People’s Party (YPP), he said as speaker that he is a leader of everyone, regardless of political party.

    He pledged to lead everyone with inclusiveness.

    Read Also: Supreme Court and Plateau lawmakers axed by Appeal Court

    He said that the recognition of the 16 lawmakers upheld by the Court of Appeals would be withheld until the interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling, which deemed the actions and decision of the Appeal Court as flawed and a misuse of the legal system.

  • Plateau guber: APC urges calm ahead of Supreme Court’s judgment

    Plateau guber: APC urges calm ahead of Supreme Court’s judgment

    The Plateau chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has called on its members and  supporters to remain calm as the  Supreme Court is set to deliver judgment on the governorship election in the state.

    The Supreme Court has slated Friday, Jan. 12, to deliver judgment on the appeal filed by Gov. Caleb Mutfwang challenging his removal by the Court of Appeal.

    The Plateau APC, in a statement by the State Publicity Secretary, Mr Sylvanus Namang, urged the people to be calm and refrain from any act contrary to the party’s culture.

    Namang said that APC believes in maintaining decorum and peace in all its conduct, no matter the situation.

    Read Also: APC to Ohanaeze: call Soludo, Otti to order over suspension, arrest of monarchs

    “Whatever direction the decision of the apex court goes, the APC, which has been a respecter of the rule of law and a strong believer in our judicial system, would welcome the outcome in good faith.

    “The APC enjoins security agencies in the state to be extra vigilant to ensure that law and order are maintained.

    “The party wishes to restate its position on respect for constitutionalism and the rule of law, which are sacrosanct for democracy and good governance,’’ he said.

    (NAN)

  • S’Court reserves judgments on Plateau, Delta polls’ disputes

    S’Court reserves judgments on Plateau, Delta polls’ disputes

    The Supreme Court yesterday reserved judgments in the governorship election appeals against Governors Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau) and Sheriff Oborevwori of Plateau (Delta). 

    A five-member panel presided over by Justice John Okoro said parties would be notified when the judgments are ready for delivery.

    Three appeals were filed on the Plateau and Delta polls.

    Of the three on Plateau, the court heard the one filed by Mutfwang (SC/CV/1190/2023). 

    It was agreed that the decision in the one heard shall be applied to the appeal by the governor’s platform- the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), marked: SC/CV/1191/2023.

    The third appeal, filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), was withdrawn by its lawyer, Samuel Atung (SAN).

    The court made him realise that the other appeals were sufficient to resolve the dispute.

    The three appeals are against the November 19 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which voided Mutfwang’s election.

    Arguing his appeal, his lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged the court to allow the appeal, set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal and restore the judgment of the election tribunal which affirmed his client’s election.

    Agabi argued that the Court of Appeal erred in reaching its conclusion that Mutfwang was not validity-sponsored and therefore not qualified to have contested.

    He further argued that, as against the lower court’s finding that the PDP disobeyed an order of the High Court of Plateau State, the order was complied with, because the party conducted fresh congresses as directed.

    Kanu contended that his client was validly nominated and sponsored by the PDP, adding that he won the majority of votes cast, which accounted for why INEC declared him the winner.

    When asked by Justices Okoro and Emmanuel Agim about the effect of the subsisting order of the Plateau High Court on the candidacy of his client, Agabi said it has no effect because the PDP complied with the order.

    He noted that the Court of Appeal equally agreed that PDP complied with the order, but only said there was no substantial compliance.

    Professor Joshua Olatoke (SAN), lawyer to the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election, Nentawe Yilwatda (the first respondent), urged the court to dismiss the appeal and affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeal.

    Olatoke argued that the lower court was right to have held that Mutfwang was not qualified to contest the election given his invalid nomination and sponsorship on the grounds that the PDP had no valid structure in place in the state to produce a valid candidate.

    Read Also: Plateau governorship election: Supreme Court reserves judgment

    He further argued that the PDP in Plateau, having failed to comply with the court order directing it to conduct fresh ward congresses to constitute its state executive, was under the control of an illegal executive, which could not conduct a valid primary to produce candidates for elections.

    When asked to react to Agabi’s claim that the PDP complied with the order, Olatoke faulted the claim.

    He drew the court’s attention to a portion of the Court of Appeal judgment, where the lower court found that the PDP only conducted fresh congresses in five out of the 17 local government areas.

    Counsel for the APC, Omosanya Popoola, also prayed the court to dismiss the appeal.

    Appeals reserved on Delta appeal

    Also yesterday, the Supreme Court heard three appeals, seeking to unseat Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State.

    The court also reserved judgments till a date to be communicated to parties.

    The first appeal, marked: SC/CV/1202/2023 was filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, Kenneth Gbagi. 

    The second, marked: SC/CV/1203, was filed by the APC candidate, Ovie Omo-Agege.

    The third (SC/CV/1204/2023) was filed by Labour Party (LP) candidate, Kennedy Pela.

  • Plateau governorship election: Supreme Court reserves judgment

    Plateau governorship election: Supreme Court reserves judgment

    The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved judgement on a suit filed by Gov. Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State seeking to restore his mandate to lead the state.

    John Okoro who led a five-member panel of justices reserved the judgment after he took arguments from lawyers to both parties in the case.

    The apex court is expected to deliver a verdict on the matter before 16 January, when the appeal will expire.

    Mutfwang of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had scored 525,299 votes to beat the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Mr Nentawe Yilwatda, who garnered 481,370 votes during the March 18, 2023 governorship poll in the state.

    The governor’s election was upheld by the Plateau State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal in Jos, the state capital.

    However, the Court of Appeal in Abuja overturned the victory, necessitating Mutfwang’s appeal at the supreme court.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mutfwang had urged the apex court to nullify the judgement of the Court of Appeal, which sacked him from office.The governor, who made this request in his appeal filed before the apex court by an eight-man team of Senior Advocates of Nigeria(SANs), led by Chief Kanu Agabi, accused the lower court of not giving his and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), fair hearing.

    A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu had on November 19, 2023 nullified the election of  Mutfwang and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a Certificate of Return to the candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Nentawe Goshwe.

    The appellate court held that the appeal brought by Goshwe was valid as the qualification issue was both a pre and post-election matter under Section 177(c) of the Nigerian Constitution and Sections 80 and 82 of the Electoral Act, 2022.

    Dissatisfied with the judgment , the governor formulated eight grounds of appeal on why the Supreme Court should validate his election.

    He argued that the issue of nomination and sponsorship, which underpinned Ground One of the petition by the APC, is not only a pre-election matter but within the internal affairs of the fourth

    Respondent (PDP), and as such the first and second Respondents lacked the locus standi to canvass it.
    The appellant also argued that the judgment of the lower court delivered on November 19, 2023 is fatally flawed for want of jurisdiction regarding Section 285(2) of the Constitution (supra).

    He insisted that disobedience of court order is not one of the grounds for maintaining an election petition under Section 134 of the Electoral Act (supra), nor is it part of Section 177(c) of the Constitution (supra), let alone disqualifying the appellant from contesting the election.

    Read Also: Mutfwang gets Plateau Christian leaders’ 10-point demands

    The governor further maintained that given the overwhelming oral and documentary evidence, including but not limited to EXHIBITS U and 2RA3, the fourth Respondent complied with EXHIBIT G1 by conducting a state congress on September 25, 2021, in Plateau.

    He also contended that the evidence of the 16th prosecution witness was thoroughly discredited and controverted, as such, the lower court was wrong to heavily rely on it against him.

    “The first and second respondents woefully failed to discharge the requisite burden of proof on them and, as such, not entitled to the reliefs sought in their petition, more so that having impugned the election as invalid for non-compliance, it is absurd of them to lay claim to victory for the same election.

    “The lower court was in grave error when it held that the Tribunal was wrong in striking out the offensive paragraphs of appellant’s reply and utilising evidence of PW16, PW24, PW27 and PW28 as a tribunal of first instance.

    (NAN)

  • Mutfwang gets Plateau Christian leaders’ 10-point demands

    Mutfwang gets Plateau Christian leaders’ 10-point demands

    • Proscription of militias as terrorists on request            
    • Emir seeks implementation of past commissions’ reports

    Christian leaders in Plateau State, under the aegis of Church Denominational Forum, have petitioned the Federal Government over the killing of over 200 people on the eve of last Christmas in Bokkos and Barkin Ladi local government areas.

    The leaders include the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Plateau, Polycarp Lubo; President of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Stephen Panya; President of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), Amos Mohzo; Bishop of Methodist Church, Jos, Nkechi Nwosu; Gideon ParaMallam, among other prominent Christian leaders in the state.

    The church leaders submitted their petition through Governor Caleb Mutfwang yesterday in Jos, the state capital, after a peace walk.

    They urged the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, to facilitate the proscription of militias allegedly responsible for the continuous killings and destruction on the Plateau.

    The church leaders described the Christmas eve attacks as organised terrorism.

    Submitting the petition to the governor, chairman of the forum, who is also the President of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Dr. Steven Panyam, said: “These attacks were not only horrific and irreprehensible but also incomprehensible.

    “The timing of these killings on Christmas Eve and during Christmas celebrations 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, in a recent press release by The Para-Mallam Peace Foundation, dated December 29, 2023, with updated facts and statistics (January 7, 2024) provided by Mr. Philip Sati Julson, National President, Butura Development Association and Chairman of Bokkos Local Government Area Association of Chairmen of Community Development, which was further corroborated by Monday Kassah, Transition Chairman of Bokkos Local Government Area and Bishop Dr. Ayuba Matawal, the following is a breakdown of details:

    “The total number of people massacred now stands at 212; internally displaced persons (IDPs) are estimated now to be about 15,000; 10 churches were burnt down: Baptist Dares, CAC Mbong, COCIN Maiyanga, COCIN Ndung, COCIN Tahore, CAC Lunghai, COCIN Ngha-Buk, and COCIN Church Hurum, and two others.

    “All the 10 pastoriums were burnt down; four pastors of COCIN, CAC, Baptist, and Assemblies of God were killed in the attacks and a pastor’s wife and his five daughters were burnt to ashes in their house.

    “A breakdown so far shows that 50 women, 20 children, and seven physically challenged persons were burnt in their homes – as they were unable to run – and 135 men were killed.

    “The total number of vehicles, cars, and buses destroyed is 24; motorcycles destroyed or stolen are about 126 by the attackers.

    “So far, this is one of the deadliest and most devastating attacks on the Plateau. The total number of houses burnt is about 301; 280 water pumps and 403 food barns (storage) were destroyed.”

    The petition contained 10 demands from the church leaders.

    Read Also: Emefiele: EFCC to appeal against N100m fine

    It sought the listing of such attackers as terrorists while they and their sponsors should be arrested and prosecuted whenever apprehended.

    The church leaders also called for the establishment of a North Central Development Commission (NCDC).

    Also, the Emir of Wase, Alhaji Muhammadu Sambo Haruna, has decried the number of killings witnessed in the past 20 years in Plateau State.

    He said they could be linked to a lack of political will by previous leaders to implement reports of the commissions of enquiry to make the perpetrators accountable and punished for their wrongdoings.

    Haruna said such incidents might continue to fester if perpetrators were not held accountable.

    The emir urged those in authority to take full charge of affairs under them to arrest the spate of killings in the country.

    Haruna spoke when led a delegation of the Muslim Ummah to Governor Mutfwang at the Government House over the recent killings in the state.

    He assured the governor that Muslims in the state were with his administration in all circumstances.

  • Plateau CAN chairman leads protest on killings

    Plateau CAN chairman leads protest on killings

    The Plateau State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) held a demonstration on Monday, January 8, to voice their opposition to the killings in the state and around the nation.

    Leading the “Plateau Peace Walk” protest were Rev. Polycarp Lubo, the state chairman of the CAN, and Rev. Dr. Stephen Panya, the president of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA).

    Also in attendance among the prominent Christian leaders in the state were Rev. Gideon ParaMallam, the bishop of the Methodist Church in Jos, Rev. Nkechi Nwosu, and Rev. Dr. Amos Mohzo, the president of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN).

    The crowd was welcomed by Plateau state governor Caleb Mutfwang at Government House in Rayfield, Jos.

    Read Also: Killings on the Plateau

    Plateau state has recently witnessed ruthless marauders causing havoc. 

    On Christmas Eve, an assault in Barkin Ladi and Bokkos local government areas claimed the lives of over 200 people.

    Numerous homes and farms were set ablaze during these nighttime attacks, leading to multiple casualties.

    The governor criticized the military for their delayed response, denouncing the coordinated killings in the towns of the two local governments as “a carnage.” 

    This has sparked both domestic and international outrage.

  • Plateau attacks: rethinking, responding to insecurity

    Plateau attacks: rethinking, responding to insecurity

    The Plateau State government is yet to publish a definitive list of victims of the Christmas Eve attacks on Bokkos, Barkin Ladi and Mangu local government areas. Police estimates, which at first put the figure at less than hundred, are more conservative. But other estimates put the figure of the dead at well over a hundred, with hundreds more wounded. What is undisputable, however, is that the attacks were neither motivated by herdsmen-farmers misunderstanding nor triggered by religious conflict, despite the endemicity of that factor in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. Some observers think the attacks were motivated by economic factors relating to expropriation of minerals interwoven with pure ethnic cleansing. But given the video recording of the attacks and its dissemination on social media, many analysts have now begun to suspect something more politically sinister.

    Whatever the motives are, it is now more urgent than ever that the federal government find a solution to the festering crisis before the country keels over. And until the factors predisposing the Middle Belt to these ferocious attacks are identified, the solutions will prove elusive. A few religious leaders, including the voluble and generally insensitive Ahmad Gumi, insist the problem is economic, and the answer, negotiation. Killing the attackers, whom he has appropriated into the Islamic faith by his own unusual logic, would be counterproductive, he warned. After all, he concludes, the military response has so far been unable to stanch the flow of blood in those violent regions. He makes no room for the factor of collusion by a section of the security forces. For a long time, too, the herdsmen-farmers struggle for fertile land was thought to be the most important factor in the crisis. The crisis has now, alas, morphed considerably into something more complex, political and subversive. The Christmas Eve attacks, complete with gory video disseminated on social media, shows how complicated the problem has become underneath.

    The country could become engulfed in chaos amidst suspicion that the conflicts are inspired and catalysed by powerful sponsors. The Plateau attacks, most analysts agree, were without any tangible or justifiable provocation. They were targeted and deliberate, and they were planned by external invaders in a manner that they left the police, military and Department of State Service (DSS) flat-footed. It is now the job of the country’s political leadership to rejig the intelligence and security services to prevent or respond massively to such attacks in future. If there is a next time, someone must be held accountable. More importantly, it is now the job of the Tinubu administration to reappraise, reform and retool the country’s security architecture to respond more spontaneously. How could a team of attackers lay siege to communities, slaughter hundreds, and withdraw without being noticed or pursued to their dens? Was there collaboration? Was there internal sabotage? And what has happened to the many communities – over a hundred – sacked and taken over by invaders in years past in a country with government and justice system?

    The Plateau attacks, certainly not the first of their kind, and if care is not taken, may not be the last, were partly designed to achieve predetermined ends. It is time the Tinubu administration reformed the security system. Lethargy needs to end. The routine and perfunctory wailings, if not collusion or indifference, of past administration needs to also end. The country is probably too vast for the size of the security personnel and logistics at the disposal of the administration; it is, therefore, time to recalibrate what is available to deal with the spiraling security crisis. By unearthing the financial malfeasance of the past and investigating the high and mighty, the administration opens itself up to all sorts of subterranean plots. This is of course not time for paranoia; but the government must not pretend that it does not have old and new enemies capable of pulling the strings from a thousand miles away.

    Read Also: Plateau killings: Protesting women burn down traditional ruler’s house

    Assuming there is no sabotage or collusion, one way to respond to localised attacks is by shutting down the affected local government areas and surrounding communities immediately. This should limit the mobility of the attackers and prevent their escape until they are smoked out of their hideaways. It is also time to put together a team to think through the crisis and find adequate and effective ways of responding to banditry and other forms of insurrection. Sheikh Gumi, who empathises more with bandits and herdsmen than their victims, advocates almost exclusive negotiations with the attackers. The administration should instead borrow a leaf from Sri Lanka which ran out of patience and made a final and successful push to uproot the Tamil Tigers in 2009 after a 26-year military campaign. The Tinubu administration will be seeking a fresh mandate in a few years; it should assign itself the next two years or less to deal massively with the agents of destabilisation. Given the administration’s effort to unearth what went wrong with the economy in the past years, it may have unwittingly positioned itself either to win this war soonest or open itself to its enemies to demystify and rubbish it. Both sides to the conflict are in a race for time. The hungrier for victory will undoubtedly win.