In an effort to restore peace and improve intercommunal relations in Plateau State, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sent his Special Assistant on Community Engagement (North Central), Dr. Abiodun Essiet, to the state last Thursday.
Dr. Essiet spent two days meeting with key community groups, including Christian leaders and Fulani Miyetti Allah representatives.
Her visit led to a town hall meeting in Jos, where traditional rulers, women and youth groups, and delegates from various local government areas discussed how to strengthen community-based peace structures and promote peaceful coexistence.
She also paid a courtesy visit to Reverend Ezekiel Dachomo, Chairman of the Regional Church Council in Barkin Ladi.
Their discussions focused on how faith-based leadership can support peace, unity, and social development.
Dr. Essiet also met widows and conveyed President Tinubu’s message of encouraging ethnic reconciliation. Reverend Dachomo has been a major voice for Christian communities in the state.
In Barkin Ladi, she met Fulani leaders to encourage dialogue between herders and farmers and to reaffirm the Federal Government’s commitment to inclusive engagement.
Later, in Jos, she held a workshop aimed at establishing community peace structures across all 17 local government areas of Plateau State.
She also held a closed-door meeting with the Irigwe community, the Miyetti Allah group, and the Bassa LGA Youth Council. Discussions focused on sustaining peace and the role of the 17-member peace committee in promoting dialogue and reconciliation between both groups.
Dr. Essiet emphasized President Tinubu’s strong commitment to peace and inclusive governance, noting that the Community-Based Peace Structure is key to strengthening unity and stability in the North Central region.
A notable early success from her peace mission was resolving a dispute involving David Toma, owner of Agha Farm in Gyel, Jos South, and some herdsmen.
After Toma seized two cows that destroyed his farm, the MACBAN Chairman of Bassa LGA, Alhaji Isah Yau, paid him N500,000 compensation on November 15. Toma then released the cows, and all parties signed an undertaking to maintain peace.
