Olayiwola Matthew
In a bid to restore peace and foster intercommunal harmony in Plateau State, President Tinubu dispatched an emissary, Dr Abiodun Essiet, to the state last Thursday, Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga said in a press statement on Sunday.
Essiet, a Senior Special Assistant on Community Engagement in the North Central Zone, spent two days in the state. She met Christian clerics and Fulani Miyetti Allah community leaders. The efforts culminated in a town hall meeting in Jos. Delegates from various local government areas, traditional rulers, women, and youth leaders gathered to discuss ways to strengthen community-based peace structures and promote coexistence among diverse communities.
Essiet paid a courtesy visit to Reverend Ezekiel Dachomo, Chairman of the Regional Church Council (RCC), in Barkin Ladi, where discussions centred on faith-based leadership and its role in promoting peace, unity, and social development. Along with Dachomo, she addressed some widows and conveyed President Tinubu’s message of fostering ethnic reconciliation in the state. Dachomo has been the loudest voice of Christian communities in the state.
She also met with Fulani leaders in Barkin Ladi to foster dialogue and mutual understanding between pastoral and farming communities, reaffirming the Federal Government’s commitment to inclusive engagement.
Later in the day, she conducted a workshop on establishing a community peace structure for the 17 Local Government Areas in Jos.
Dr Essiet also held a closed-door meeting with the Irigwe community, the Miyetti Allah group, and representatives from the Youth Council of Bassa LGA. They focused on sustaining peace and discussed how the 17-member peace committee strengthens dialogue, reconciliation, and coexistence between the two communities.
Dr Essiet reiterated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to peace and inclusive governance, noting that the Community-Based Peace Structure serves as a key instrument for grassroots unity, dialogue, and long-term stability in the North Central region.
A quick win in the peace efforts was the resolution of the conflict between David Toma, the owner of Agha Farm in Gyel district of Jos South and some herdsmen. Toma seized two cows following the destruction of his farm. On November 15, the MACBAN Chairman of BASSA LGA, Alhaji Isah Yau, paid a compensation of N500,000 to Toma, who subsequently released the cows. All parties signed an undertaking to embrace peace in the state.