Tinubu explains airport meeting with Plateau attack victims amid logistical hurdles
Abdullateef Fowewe
The presidency has revealed why President Bola Tinubu met with Plateau attack victims at the airport.
A statement obtained on Friday from Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy explained that Tinubu’s decision to meet victims of recent attacks in Plateau State at the Jos airport, rather than in town, stemmed from tight scheduling and aviation constraints.
On Thursday, Tinubu’s itinerary featured a bilateral meeting with Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno at the Presidential Villa, followed by planned travel to Iperu, Ogun State.
After a briefing from Plateau Governor Caleb Mutfwang on the attacks, the President suspended the Ogun trip and redirected efforts to Jos.
“Overnight, the Presidential Villa made arrangements for the visit to Jos, with presidential assets quickly deployed,” Onanuga stated.
However, the Chad meeting “ran longer than expected, affecting President Tinubu’s scheduled departure for Jos.”
Upon landing in Jos, further challenges arose.
The airport runway lacks navigational aids for night flights, and the 40-minute drive to town made a round-trip visit before dusk unfeasible.
Officials thus arranged for victims and stakeholders to meet Tinubu in a hall at the airport.
High-level figures, including the Minister of Defence, Chief of Army Staff, and Inspector General of Police—who had assessed the epicenter in Rukuba—joined the session.
Tinubu expressed condolences and engaged stakeholders on tackling the “recurring, decades-old conflict that has resulted in needless loss of lives and property.”
He listened to victims and local leaders, assuring them of federal action.
“He promised the deployment of 5000 AI-enabled cameras to monitor the city and enhance the identification and arrest of troublemakers,” Onanuga noted.
The President also invited community leaders to Abuja for follow-up talks on lasting solutions.
The live-televised meeting was described as “solemn and reassuring, boosting residents’ confidence.”
Onanuga emphasised its strategic value: “President Tinubu’s visit to Jos was not merely symbolic. It was a strategic, high-level engagement aimed at bringing all stakeholders together to address the root causes of conflict and insecurity.”
He added that Tinubu delivered a clear message, “Sustainable peace must be built with the people, not imposed on them,” despite criticism from naysayers.
