Insecurity in Plateau: Ex-governorship aspirant knocks Mutfwang, says bandits sack 96 communities under his watch

A former governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, John Sura, has taken a scathing criticism at the Governor of Plateau State Barrister Caleb Mutfwang, accusing him of focusing on the 2027 governorship election at the risk of welfare of the Plateau citizens.

He said over 96 communities have been sacked and taken over by bandits under the full watch of governor Mutfwang who seemed to have run out of idea of what to do except to get involved in how he will contest a second tenure of office.

Sura made the statement on 14 September 2025, saying that Mutfwang had abandoned governance and the welfare of the citizens for the 2027 polls, as the people are suffering from neglect, adding that the surge in internally displaced persons in Plateau was a sad story and depicts Governor Caleb’s incompetence to govern.

He cited areas affected with so much internally displaced person as Bokkos and Mangu local government areas while over 2,400 households have been affected in the Barkin Ladi council area.

He said, “In Mangu alone, we have about 46 villages where nobody is living today, because they were chased out. In Bokkos, we have close to 50 villages deserted.

“When you go to the IDP centres, you won’t meet them because they have already moved into the city centres, and this is causing more problems. In Barkin Ladi, I can’t recall the exact figures, but we are talking about close to 2,400 households affected.”

Sura further lamented the state government’s lack of seriousness in carrying out the recommendations contained in a report his committee put together for the government to act upon.

“To my surprise, more than one year down the line, nothing has been done on the report we submitted. From the interim report to even the final report, nothing.

“The final report was ready since last year, but because of a lack of seriousness from the government, they did not treat it urgently. It was only sometimes in February this year that the report was placed, and since then it has been gathering dust in the cupboard,” he stated.

Sura also stated that the committee, which was chaired by Retired Air Commodore Christopher Pam, had identified villages that were partially deserted, where people ran out because they were scared or received information that attacks were coming.

But he noted with sadness that the comprehensive report, which is still intact, was left untouched by the governor due to a lack of political will.