On April 2, 2026 President Bola Tinubu visited the victims of Jos massacre.
In a a town hall meeting with political and traditional leaders at the Yakubu Gowon Airport Heipang, near Jos on Thursday, Tinubu ordered the immediate installation of over 5,000 networked surveillance cameras across Plateau State to help law enforcement agencies instantly identify those he called “troublemakers” and prevent future attacks.
WITHIN NIGERIA gathered that Tinubu’s visit comes days after the Palm Sunday attack in Angwan Rukuba district, which claimed 28 lives.
His visit was also coming as the Army deployed 850 additional soldiers to reinforce security in Plateau.
In his assurance during the visit, President Tinubu stated that “the Minister for Communication is here to give you assurance that we are going to install immediately a network of cameras that will help the law enforcement agencies to identify the troublemakers instantly, over 5,000 of those will be networked.”
The President acknowledged that no amount of money could compensate victims for their losses but promised government support.
It was gathered that days after the incident, a viral video of a woman clutching onto the bloodied corpse of her son, killed in the attack, broke the internet and became the face of the gory incident.
The mourning mother, identified as Mrs Rhoda, also attended the town hall meeting where the President consoled her on the loss of her son, whom he identified as Ayuba.
Turning to her, Tinubu said, “I know the pain. I see in the video how you buried your loved ones and the pain and agony in your heart.
“But it’s only God who can give you joy and hope. No amount of money can pay all of you back. Yes, as a government, we will try our best to comfort you, to work with you.”
The President directed security chiefs present, including the Inspector-General of Police, Chief of Defence Staff, and Minister of Defence, to unearth and apprehend those responsible for the killings.
“I thank the men and women of the armed forces, particularly the police, for what they are doing and what they are about to do.
“You must unearth and find the killers.
I’m glad IGP is here. I’m glad the Chief of Defence Staff is here too. I’m glad the Minister of Defence is here,” the President stated.
He announced the constitution of a committee to assess losses suffered by victims and provide compensation.
“Immediately we return to Abuja, the committee, as mentioned, will include the governor and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs. Come and see me. Take numeric analysis. You are a data person for the victims.
“Let’s see what we can do for their losses. We cannot replace human beings, but whatever we can do to give them minimum comfort, we will,” Tinubu said.
In any case, following this development, President Tinubu’s has received a lot of criticism even some said it fell shirt if what such sensitive visit should be known for.
Obi, Atiku criticise Tinubu over the visit
The 2023 presidential candidate of Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi lambasted the president for failing to visit Angwan Rukuba, the scene of the massacre.
According to Mr. Obi, the attitude of President Tinubu is a clear manifestation of “complete absence of leadership”.
Obi said this in a Friday statement shared on his verified Facebook account.
In his words, “during his visit to Benue State in June 2025, Bola Ahmed Tinubu stopped at the Government House but did not go to the actual scene where innocent Nigerians lost their lives.
“Similarly, yesterday in Jos, his engagement ended at the airport instead of at the affected communities.
“What happened in Plateau yesterday highlights a complete absence of leadership.
“True leadership requires presence, empathy, compassion, and a willingness to meet people where their pain truly lies. For citizens who have just lost loved ones, homes, and their sense of safety, being addressed from an airport tarmac is profoundly inadequate.”
According to Obi, this approach shows the sense of abandonment already felt by innocent Nigerians who have endured repeated cycles of violence without meaningful protection or justice.
“In such moments, leadership must not only be visible but also tangible—standing with victims, listening to survivors, and acknowledging the depth of their grief.
“If we truly desire a better Nigeria, we must demand leadership that is present, responsive, and responsible at all times,” Obi stressed.
Mr. Obi is not alone in this criticism. Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the former presidential candidate of People’s Democratic Party, PDP has also showed his disappointment over the visit.
According to the former vice president, president Tinubu visited Jos Airport and not the grieving victims.
Atiku described the visit as yet another troubling indication of a pattern of detachment from the suffering of Nigerians.
In a statement signed by Atiku’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, on Thursday, said the events in Plateau State have once again exposed ‘a disturbing and unacceptable approach to national tragedy.’
“It is both shocking and deeply insensitive that several days after the gruesome killings of innocent citizens, the President’s so-called “on-the-spot assessment” was reduced to a brief stop at the foot of his aircraft, never extending beyond the airport, never reaching the grieving communities, and never touching the pain of the victims.
“Even more troubling is the impression that this fleeting visit was hurriedly curtailed to allow the President proceed to Lagos for the Easter holidays, a decision that reflects a deeply troubling prioritisation in the face of national grief.
“While families continue to mourn those slaughtered on Palm Sunday, the President chose to convert what ought to have been a solemn visit into a political spectacle, meeting party loyalists in Jos under the thin guise of official engagement. This is not leadership; it is indifference dressed as protocol.
“This approach mirrors his earlier conduct in Benue State in June 2025, when a condolence visit over a deadly attack conspicuously avoided the epicentre in Yelwata, only to devolve into a political rally. The repetition of this pattern is no longer accidental, it is now a consistent and troubling habit.
Explaining further, Atiku said that “in Plateau, the President neither visited the bereaved families nor the injured receiving treatment in hospitals. He offered no concrete policy direction, no decisive security intervention, and no reassurance that such horrors would not recur. Instead, he staged a meet-and-greet within the confines of the airport, surrounded by politicians, traditional rulers, and party operatives—far removed from the anguish of the people.
“Even more disturbing is the government’s decision to transport grieving citizens from distant parts of Jos Municipal to the airport in Heipang near Barkin Ladi, merely to stage an appearance before the President. At a time when families are in deep mourning, such actions reduce genuine human tragedy to a choreographed spectacle—prioritising optics over empathy and dignity. This is not only inappropriate; it is shameful.
“This conduct raises serious questions about the President’s sincerity and capacity to confront the escalating insecurity ravaging the nation. A leader who cannot stand with his people in their darkest hour cannot convincingly claim to be fighting for their safety,” he stated.
Atiku went further to stress that Nigerians were not asking for ceremonial appearances or fleeting sympathy visits, saying that they demanded and deserved a government that can secure lives and property.
“They do not need to see the President’s face; they need to feel the impact of his leadership.
“Until this administration moves beyond optics and embraces decisive, people-centered action, such visits will remain hollow exercises, detached from the very citizens they are meant to comfort,” he added.
APC hails Tinubu over the visit
However, in contrast, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has commended the visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to Plateau State to commiserate with the government and people of the state.
According to him, the visit is a profound demonstration of responsive leadership, empathy, and national solidarity at a time when the people of Plateau are grieving the painful and unjust loss of their loved ones.
Speaking during the visit, the APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, condemned the killings in the strongest and most unequivocal terms, describing the attack as “inhuman, cowardly, reprehensible, and a direct assault on the peace, unity, and soul of Plateau State.”
According to Professor Yilwatda, “the continued shedding of innocent blood in Plateau is not only unacceptable but a national tragedy that must no longer be treated with routine outrage and temporary responses.”
In a statement signed by Abimbola Tooki, Special Adviser to the National Chairman on Media and Communications Strategy, Yilwatda stressed that “the time has come for deliberate, coordinated, and result-oriented efforts by all relevant authorities and stakeholders to ensure that such dastardly and unconscionable acts never happen again in Plateau State or anywhere else in the country.”
Professor Yilwatda called on leaders of communities across Plateau State to “become more vigilant, responsive, and proactive in identifying and reporting suspicious movements and security threats within their domains.”
He noted that“the recurring pattern of killings strongly suggests that many of those behind these heinous acts are not ghosts or invisible invaders, but criminal elements and miscreants living within or around the communities, exploiting local vulnerabilities to unleash mayhem on innocent citizens.”
In his words,” these evil perpetrators must no longer be shielded by silence, fear, complicity, or communal indifference. They must be identified, exposed, apprehended, and made to face the full wrath of the law,” he insisted.
The APC National Chairman further charged security agencies to “urgently rethink and upgrade their security architecture and operational methods in tackling the persistent violence in Plateau State.”
Presidency defends the visit at Airport
As the criticism continues to simmer, the Presidency has defended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to meet victims at Yakubu Gowon Airport rather than driving into Jos township, citing flight restrictions and logistical constraints as the reasons for the arrangement.
In a statement by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga on Friday, the Presidency said the runway at the airport does not support night flights due to the absence of navigational aids, making it impossible for Tinubu to visit Rukuba, drive back to the airport and depart before dusk.
According to Onanuga, “upon arrival in Jos, the visit encountered some logistical challenges. While the road distance from the airport to Jos township is approximately 40 minutes, the runway does not support night flights due to the absence of navigational aids. The constraints made it unfeasible to drive into town, meet victims for on-the-spot assessment and return to the airport before dusk.
“Consequently, state and federal officials decided to bring representatives of the affected community to a hall adjoining the airport so the President could meet with them promptly while adhering to flight restrictions,” the statement read.
The Presidency also explained the delay in Tinubu’s departure for Jos, saying his itinerary for Thursday had included receiving Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno at the Presidential Villa for a bilateral meeting on security cooperation.
“President Tinubu’s itinerary for Thursday included two main engagements: receiving the Chadian President, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, and proceeding to Iperu, Ogun State. After Governor Caleb Mutfwang’s briefing, President Tinubu suspended the trip to Ogun.
“Overnight, the Presidential Villa made arrangements for the visit to Jos, with presidential assets quickly deployed. However, the President could not postpone the scheduled visit by the Chadian leader.
“The President of Chad was at the Presidential Villa for a very important bilateral meeting focused on strengthening security collaboration between the two countries. The meeting ran longer than expected, affecting President Tinubu’s scheduled departure for Jos,” the statement read.
“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 in the state,” Onanuga said.
