Fresh violence erupts in Plateau communities as government relaxes curfew

Tension escalated in Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State on Wednesday, shortly after the state government relaxed the 48-hour curfew it imposed on Sunday.

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The curfew followed a fatal attack in the Gari Ya Waye community of Angwan Rukuba on Sunday night, where at least 27 persons were killed.

On Wednesday, residents reported panic in Nassarawa Gwom and surrounding areas after gunshots were heard near St. Michael’s area, with unverified claims of an attack around a COCIN church.

Videos seen by PREMIUM TIMES show people running helter-skelter, while another clip shows shattered glass windows that appear to be from a church building.

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A resident, Josiah Pam, who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES by phone, said tension rose early in the day following a disturbing discovery in the area. “We heard that the body of a woman was found around Gada Biu, and since then, tension has spread across the area,” he said.

Mr Pam added that fear quickly gripped nearby communities, including Farin Gada and Nassarawa Gwom, as rumours of further attacks circulated. “People are not sure what is happening exactly, but everyone is afraid. Shops are closing, and movement is restricted,” he said.

A resident of Angwan Rukuba junction, who didn’t want to be named, told our reporter that one Alkasim Umar was killed and many others were injured in a clash between some Muslim and Christian youths in the area.

He said police and soldiers later arrived at the scene and de-escalated the situation.

“It was at the beginning of the unrest today that the police came. Then later on, soldiers came. They were not deployed at the junction. They came when the thing (unrest) was happening,” he said.

Several videos seen by our reporter showed people fleeing along Bauchi Road and around the Terminus Market as tension escalated.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that there was also unrest in Duwala, Angwan Rimi, and Zololo areas of the town.

The situation forced residents who stepped out to return home.

However, police and soldiers were deployed and calmed the situation in many areas, they said.

“It was through the intervention of the army that everywhere calmed down. Everywhere calmed down after the army came. Currently, everywhere is inside, and the place is very calm,” a resident of Angwan Rukuba Junction told our reporter via telephone.

Absent security personnel

Those who spoke to this newspaper blamed Wednesday’s unrest on the government’s failure to deploy security personnel as it relaxed the curfew.

There had been palpable tension as the victims of Sunday’s attack were mostly Christians, and sentiments had spread that the attacker targeted them for their faith. However, an Islamic group, Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), has said four Muslims were among those killed.

One resident, Nasir, who drove from the Naraguta area to Ahmadu Bello Way, told PREMIUM TIMES that there were no security personnel throughout the journey, which was about 10 kilometres.

Nasir left Ahmadu Bello Way shortly after arriving due to the unrest.

Jos has witnessed an on-and-off unrest for more than a generation now. Since the 2001 crisis, Muslims and Christians have attacked each other in the city, usually sparked by a single incident.

The city had gradually grown polarised, so that most communities are either inhabited only by Muslims or by Christians. There are only a few communities where Muslims and Christians mix, an engineer of the recurrent crisis.

Prolonged curfew risks hunger

One resident in the Rikkos area, Sani, expressed concern that renewed tension may force the government to reintroduce the curfew, saying it would leave many families hungry.

Sani said he left his home early for the market to conduct quick business before the curfew ended at 3 p.m., only to return home without doing any business.

He explained that the two days without work strained his finances and those of other families.

Efforts to reach the spokesperson of the Plateau State Police Command, Alfred Alabo, were unsuccessful. Calls to the command spokesperson were not returned, and messages sent via WhatsApp showed as delivered and read, but received no response as of the time of filing this report.

Government reacts

Gyang Bere, Director of Press and Public Affairs to Governor Caleb Mutfwang, told PREMIUM TIMES that security forces had been deployed across affected areas.

“Securities have been mobilised to every part of the city, and as we speak now, everything is under control,” Mr Bere said.

He explained that the decision to relax the curfew followed consultations involving security agencies and community stakeholders.

“We had a meeting. The youths had a meeting with some individuals, and then we felt there was an understanding. That was why the curfew was relaxed. It was not just the state government that took the decision, security agencies were also involved,” he said.

Mr Bere added that such decisions are typically based on security assessments. “Before a curfew is imposed or relaxed, there must be security meetings. They review the situation, and then a decision will be taken. That was what was done,” he said.

He, however, indicated that the government was reassessing the situation in light of the latest developments.

“The government is taking proactive measures, and in the next few hours, a decision will be taken,” he added, noting that authorities were reviewing the earlier relaxation of the curfew.

The latest development comes amid heightened anxiety in Plateau State following a series of recent attacks, including Sunday’s killings in the Angwan Rukuba community.

It also comes less than a day after the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, assured Nigerians that the security situation in Plateau was “under control,” citing ongoing military operations and increased deployments.

However, residents say the recurrence of violence and panic raises concerns about the effectiveness of security responses in the state.