Locals ‘Colluding’ with Herdsmen in Plateau Killings, Cleric Alleges

A prominent cleric has accused armed extremists and complicit locals of orchestrating a wave of attacks across Plateau State, warning that the violence amounts to “genocide” and threatens Nigeria’s unity.

“Not the Herders We Knew”

Speaking on Friday’s edition of Inside Sources on Channels TV, El-Buba—a cleric based in Jos but originally from Borno State—insisted that the assailants are “foreign Fulani terrorists” rather than traditional local herders. He said they enter Plateau communities with tip?offs from certain residents, displace families, destroy property and then occupy the abandoned villages.

“These are not the local herders that we used to know. These are Fulani terrorists who target communities. When they come in, they connive with some of the locals. They give them information. They come in from outside and they invade,” El-Buba said.

The cleric echoed recent comments by Governor Caleb Mutfwang, who described the co?ordinated attacks as a form of genocide. El?Buba argued that the scale and frequency of violence—he cites more than 60 affected communities—reflect a deliberate strategy rather than random criminality.

“It’s not something that just happened. It’s been happening with several attacks in the past and recently, what has happened on the Plateau,” he added. “Plateau is cosmopolitan. It houses virtually all Nigerians. And if anything goes wrong with Plateau, everything goes wrong with Nigeria.”

Perceived Impunity under Previous Administration

El?Buba claimed the attackers have grown bolder due to “protection” they felt under the prior federal government. He recalled issuing warnings to the former president in the latter’s native dialect, urging him to rein in the militants.

 “In the past administration, these people felt it was their government. They felt protected. These people move with arms. I raised an alarm, called on the then president to speak to his own people in his own dialect.”

A Strategic Land?Grab?

According to the cleric, the endgame is not merely terror or extortion but the permanent displacement of indigenous communities and the seizure of their ancestral lands.

“They have a programme, a plan, a mandate, and that mandate is that they must occupy and send the owners of the land away.”

Calls for Urgent Intervention

El?Buba warned that without swift federal action, Nigeria’s cohesion could unravel. He urged President Bola Tinubu and security agencies to treat the violence as a national emergency.

 “If there is no intervention, there is a bleak future for how this country will stand together. We are in a very serious time in the history of this country.”

His remarks have renewed appeals for decisive leadership, robust security responses, and measures to protect land rights and justice for Plateau’s communities.