Atiku Raises Alarm Over Renewed Killings in Plateau

Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has raised fresh alarm over the bloodshed in Plateau State, describing the recurring attacks and the reported assault on mourners during a burial as evidence of a dangerous collapse of security response and coordination in the state. Atiku, in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on […]

Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has raised fresh alarm over the bloodshed in Plateau State, describing the recurring attacks and the reported assault on mourners during a burial as evidence of a dangerous collapse of security response and coordination in the state.

Atiku, in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said the repeated pattern of attacks in Plateau communities “now bears the frightening signature of organised terrorism”, warning that the continued cycle of killings has exposed the absence of an effective counterterrorism strategy by the Tinubu administration.

The former Vice President said the latest killings in Barkin Ladi represent yet another painful reminder that innocent Nigerians are increasingly left at the mercy of armed assailants while government response remains tragically slow and reactive.

“The violent crises in Plateau State have become an open sore that Nigeria must urgently heal. What is happening is no longer random violence. It is a recurring pattern of coordinated terror attacks against vulnerable communities,” Atiku stated.

The statement noted that credible reports indicate that armed terrorists attacked the Nding Susut community in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area on Tuesday night, killing several residents.

Shockingly, the assailants reportedly returned the following day to attack mourners gathered for the burial of the victims.
Atiku said the development paints a grim picture of a nation where even grief and burial ceremonies are no longer sacred.

“That attackers could reportedly return to the same community barely 24 hours later to unleash another round of bloodshed is a damning indictment of the government’s failure to respond swiftly to distress calls and secure vulnerable communities.

“Even more disturbing are conflicting official narratives surrounding the massacre. While youth leaders and community sources insist that mourners were attacked during a mass burial, police authorities have reportedly disputed aspects of those accounts. What Nigerians deserve at this moment is not bureaucratic contradiction or institutional defensiveness, but urgent action, accountability, and protection for human lives.

“There can be no justification whatsoever for this repeated failure. Nigerians are tired of condolences without protection, and outrage without action. The inability of security agencies to dominate and secure areas that have become repeated theatres of bloodshed is deeply troubling.”

Atiku further recalled that President Bola Tinubu had similarly failed to physically visit the epicentre of the March 29 killings in Jos North, where dozens of innocent citizens lost their lives.

“During his visit to Plateau State on April 2, President Tinubu stayed far away from the communities that suffered the attacks. Leadership demands more than carefully staged appearances; it demands empathy, courage, and decisive action.

“The Tinubu administration has failed the people of Plateau State in its constitutional duty to protect lives and property. The bloodbath unfolding in Plateau today is unprecedented, and it reflects a frightening lack of political will, strategic clarity, and operational urgency.”

According to the statement, various reports and official records indicate that more than 2,500 people have been killed in Plateau State between 2023 and 2025 alone.

“These are not mere statistics. They are fathers, mothers, children, farmers, worshippers, and breadwinners whose lives have been cut short while government continues to grope in the dark for solutions.

“What is even more painful is that there is no convincing indication that this administration has developed any coherent plan to stop the killings.
“Investigating one massacre after another without dismantling the structures that enable these atrocities will achieve little beyond temporarily calming public outrage.

“The people of Plateau State deserve more than sympathy visits and press statements. They deserve a robust, intelligence-driven, and proactive security architecture capable of preventing attacks before they happen.”

The Waziri Adamawa therefore called on the Federal Government, security agencies, and the Plateau State Government to immediately adopt a comprehensive and pragmatic strategy to halt the killings and restore public confidence.

“The people of Plateau State deserve safety, justice, and peace — not endless mourning and empty political rhetoric,” Atiku said.