30/03/2026
The official statement of Peace Advancement Action Against Violence and R**e Foundation,
today 30 March 2026,on the unfortunate incident that occurred on Sunday 29th of March,by 8pm at Angwan Rukuba,Jos North LGA, Plateau State,North Central,West Africa.
Our hearts are heavy and honestly we are tired. Tired of writing statements like this, tired of mourning people who should still be alive, tired of watching harmless citizens massacred and killed, tired of watching the same story repeat itself across Plateau State and Nigeria.
What happened in Angwan Rukuba (Gari Ya Waye) in Jos North on Sunday evening is not just painful, it is heartbreaking. Over 25 lives gone. Men ( fathers,sons, brothers , uncles, husbands, grandmothers) women ( mothers, daughters,sisters,wives,aunties, grandmothers), children ( boys,girls) young adults,teenagers. People who woke up that morning not knowing it would be their last.
And again we hear the same words, unknown gunmen.
So let us ask, when will these unknown gunmen be known? When will the mask finally be unmasked?
What happened to the (EWERS) early warning,early response systems?
What exactly is the problem?
Are these dark souls truly faceless?
Are they spirits or is something simply not being done right? Because people do not just carry out attacks and vanish without a trace.
While we keep saying unknown, families are burying their loved ones with great sorrows ,tears and excruciating pains.
The poor keep paying with their lives for crimes they did not commit.
The vulnerable and indigent continue to suffer for failures they did not create.
Enough is enough!!!
An unsafe society is not just about killings,it is about fear becoming normal. It is about children growing up learning fear before they learn hope. It is about communities breaking along religious and ethnic lines.
Young people who should be friends are now divided again.
By religion.
By ethnicity.
By suspicion.
This is how cycles of violence are sustained.
At PAAAVARF we work in peacebuilding, protection, rehabilitation, reintegration and healing, so we see beyond the headlines. Trauma does not trend but it stays. Anger grows quietly. Trust disappears and before long the same story repeats.
So no, it is not just about displacement,it is not just about deaths. It is about the future we are slowly destroying if we still sweep this under the carpet and do nothing different.
We acknowledge the Plateau State Government for the curfew put in place to restore calm. It is necessary,but calm is not safety and restriction is not protection.
What we need is deeper than reaction.
What we need is change.
We need a complete overhaul of the security architecture in the state,with intentional investment in community policing and intelligence-driven systems.
We must begin to build a society where peace is not accidental but intentional.
The government has shown that when it comes to taxes and revenue, there can be structure, urgency, enforcement, and clear deadlines. Citizens are given timelines and compliance is expected. So we must ask, why can the same level of urgency not be applied to protecting lives? Why are there no clear, time-bound commitments to identifying perpetrators, dismantling these networks, and restoring safety?
If citizens can be given deadlines to pay, then security agencies should be given deadlines to act. Why do those who take lives remain “unknown,” and when will they be found, named, and brought to justice?
Lives should not be treated as an open-ended responsibility, and they must never be seen as less important than revenue.
The citizens are demanding for:
✅ A well functioning and accountable government where people feel protected not abandoned
✅ A sound business environment where citizens can live and work without fear
✅ Equitable distribution of resources so no community feels pushed aside
✅ Acceptance of the rights of others so differences do not become division
✅ Good relations between neighbours so communities stand together
✅ Free flow of information so people are informed and not left in fear
✅ Human capital development so our youth are empowered not divided
✅ Low levels of corruption so justice is not selective and security is not compromised
These are not big grammar. These are the foundations of peace.
We are calling on government at all levels to wake up to the cries of the people they took an oath of allegiance to protect.
Let the poor masses breathe.
Let their fundamental human rights be respected.
They have the right to live.
They have the right to feel safe.
They have the right to exist without fear.
The right to life is not just about not being killed but people should be safe in their homes and communities
The government MUST prevent violence, not just respond after.
Citizens should not live in constant fear of being attacked and security systems must actually protect lives effectively.
Under the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria (Section 33), every person has the right to life, and no one shall be intentionally deprived of their life except in very limited legal situations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 3) states, “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.”
But right now, it feels like these rights are becoming privileges.
And let this be clear
👉 Lives are not disposable.
👉 Lives are not statistics.
👉 Lives are not political talking points.
They are human beings,let lives stop being toyed with.
We DEMAND justice for the victims and survivors.
Not silence
Not promises
Not explanations
Not palliative
JUSTICE!!!
Those responsible MUST be found!
They MUST be named!
They MUST be held accountable!Until justice is seen and felt, the wounds will remain open and the cycle will continue.
To the people of Angwan Rukuba, we see you and we stand with you. Your pain is not invisible.
And to all of us, this is not just their story, it is ours. Because an unsafe society does not choose where it goes next.
Peace is not automatic,it must be built, protected and defended.
Right now, we must do better
We need ACTION not PROMISES!
We need JUSTICE not DELAYS!
Every life lost is not just a statistics,it is a failure of protection. Until justice is seen and felt,peace will remain a promise,not a reality.
Amb Vivien E Abara
Executive Director PAAAVARF
State Coordinator,NACTAL
State Coordinator, CSONETMADE
Positive Peace Activator,West and Central Africa.
UNODC - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
