Jos, Plateau State
Plateau Youth G17 is heartbroken and outraged by the gruesome, coordinated attacks that have once again engulfed communities in Bokkos and Bassa Local Government Areas. These are not isolated clashes — they are calculated, targeted, and genocidal in intent. We condemn these atrocities in the strongest possible terms and call on all Plateau people to rise and defend themselves against these persistent waves of destruction.
In the past few days alone, over 100 people have been killed, more than 60 injured, and over 10,000 persons displaced, now struggling for survival in at least two makeshift IDP camps in Hurti, Bokkos, Gwande, Miango, and surrounding areas. Furthermore, more than 180 homes have been reduced to ashes, with entire villages left in ruins.
These horrifying numbers are not just statistics — they represent families shattered, futures stolen, and people pushed to the brink. We are once again burying our dead while those responsible walk freely, emboldened by years of government insincerity, security failures, and systemic injustice.
For too long, the Plateau has bled in silence. We have cried for justice. We have begged for intervention. But our cries have been met with indifference. We can no longer wait for help that never comes.
We must rise—not in lawlessness, but in lawful and organized self-defense.
It is both a moral obligation and a constitutional right to protect our lives, our families, and our ancestral heritage. The Nigerian Constitution, under Section 33, guarantees every citizen the right to life — and implicit in that right is the right to defend it.
We therefore call on:
• All Plateau communities to activate and strengthen local security and vigilante networks in coordination with their traditional institutions.
• The Plateau State Government to immediately mobilize resources to support community-led defense and provide emergency relief to IDPs.
• The Federal Government and security agencies to stop paying lip service and act decisively by arresting and prosecuting the known perpetrators and sponsors of these attacks.
• The international community, civil society, and human rights organizations take urgent interest in the genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and crimes against humanity unfolding in Plateau State and help amplify the cries of our people.
This is a defining moment for our generation. Will we cower in fear, or will we stand to defend the land of our fathers?
We will not be exterminated.
We will not be erased.
The Plateau will rise!
Signed: Gyang Yakubu
Director of Media