The governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mutfwang, has said his use of an armoured personnel carrier (APC) during his visit to Angwan Rukuba in Jos North LGA after a deadly attack was wrongly portrayed on social media.
The governor visited the area after suspected bandits killed about 28 people and injured several others on Sunday evening.
He arrived at the scene with tight security, including an armoured vehicle, from which he initially addressed a tense crowd that had surrounded his convoy.
Videos from the visit quickly spread online, sparking widespread reactions and debate.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Friday, Mutfwang rejected claims that his actions were driven by fear, explaining that the decision was based on security advice.
He said he had been in Abuja for official duties, including a high-level security meeting, when news of the attack broke, prompting him to return immediately.
According to him, residents refused to allow the evacuation of victims’ bodies until he arrived.
“Unless they see the governor, they are not going to allow those corpses to be evacuated,” he said.
Mutfwang noted that although he wanted to head straight to the scene, security personnel urged caution due to concerns about a potentially volatile situation.
“The security personnel have a duty to protect me, and if they assess that the situation they perceived was hostile, they had a duty to protect me,” he said.
Despite the risks, the governor insisted on visiting the location.
“I could have stayed back until the whole thing had calmed down, but I insisted on going to the scene,” he said.
He explained that standing through the roof of the armoured vehicle was to better communicate with the crowd.
“From the height I stood… it was for me to gain height in order to address the crowd,” Mutfwang said, adding that residents later reassured him of his safety and encouraged him to come closer.
The governor also criticised what he described as selective reporting of the incident online.
“If not for mischief, why are people not focusing on where I spent 90 percent of the time with the crowd, seeing the corpses, appealing to people, calming people?” he said.
“You could see that social media can take a small portion and misrepresent it completely.”
Mutfwang maintained that he felt secure among the residents during the visit.
“I was comfortable with the people. I knew the people were not going to harm me, but the security had to do their assessment and evaluation,” he added.