A Senate report has revealed that no fewer than 11,749 people have been killed in sustained violence across Plateau State between 2001 and 2025, with scores of communities destroyed, churches razed and clergy murdered, raising fresh concerns over Nigeria’s worsening security crisis.

The report, presented to the Senate by the Leader of the Upper Chamber, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), was based on documentary evidence submitted by stakeholders from the North-Central geopolitical zone. It detailed what was described as a long-running pattern of coordinated attacks, mass displacement and the gradual disappearance of indigenous communities.

According to the report, at least 420 communities across 13 local government areas were attacked within the period, leading to the displacement of about 25,528 households. It further stated that more than 136 communities have been completely deserted by their original inhabitants and are now occupied and renamed by new settlers.

The Senate was also told that over 35 churches were destroyed, while 33 pastors were murdered during the years under review, underscoring the heavy human and social toll of the violence.

Stakeholders who appeared before the Senate argued that the scale, persistence and pattern of the attacks point to something more serious than intermittent farmer-herder clashes. They described the situation as “systematic ethnic cleansing and territorial displacement,” allegedly aimed at forcing indigenous Plateau communities off their ancestral lands through organised violence.

Testimonies presented at the hearing indicated that many villages have suffered repeated night-time attacks by unidentified gunmen, resulting in mass killings, the destruction of homes and the subsequent occupation of the affected areas after residents fled.

Beyond Plateau State, stakeholders warned that insecurity across the North-East, North-West and North-Central zones is being sustained by a network of financiers, arms suppliers and foreign fighters. They identified Boko Haram, bandits and armed Fulani herdsmen as key drivers of violence, stressing that their continued operations are enabled by unchecked funding and weapons supply chains.

They called on the Federal Government to urgently track, identify and prosecute sponsors of violent groups, recommending that confiscated assets be used to compensate victims. The report also emphasised the need for technology-driven, intelligence-led security operations to address modern asymmetric warfare.

The hearing further renewed calls for the establishment of an independent commission of inquiry to investigate allegations of genocide, persecution and violent criminal attacks in affected regions. Participants also urged constitutional reforms to formally recognise traditional rulers and restore their role in local governance and conflict resolution.

Stakeholders criticised the constitutional arrangement that names governors and local government chairmen as chief security officers without granting them control over security agencies, describing it as a major weakness that strengthens the case for state police.

While acknowledging the role of criminal elements, the report noted that many Fulani communities in Plateau State have historically coexisted peacefully with their neighbours. However, rising land pressure, arms proliferation and ethno-religious tensions since 2000 were said to have worsened relations and led to the stereotyping of innocent groups.

To curb further violence, stakeholders recommended the strengthening and proper equipping of local vigilante groups, as well as the creation of a centralised and well-coordinated national security architecture, supported by effective surveillance and cross-border intelligence cooperation.

Source: BusinessDay