The senior special assistant to the president on community engagement, Abiodun Essiet, has held a meeting with Ezekiel Dachomo, a Plateau-based cleric, as part of renewed peace efforts in the state.
In a statement on Sunday, presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said Essiet was sent by the president as a peace envoy.
During the two-day mission, Essiet met with Dachomo, the regional chairman of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Barkin Ladi, along with Miyetti Allah delegates, and various traditional and community leaders.
The conversation between Dachomo and Essiet reportedly “centred on faith-based leadership and its role in promoting peace, unity, and social development”.
Onanuga added that Essiet and Dachomo also interacted with widows and “conveyed President Tinubu’s message of fostering ethnic reconciliation in the state”.
Essiet additionally engaged with Fulani leaders in Barkin Ladi to “foster dialogue and mutual understanding between pastoral and farming communities”.
“Later in the day, she conducted a workshop on establishing a community peace structure for the 17 Local Government Areas in Jos,” the statement said.
“Dr Essiet also held a closed-door meeting with the Irigwe community, the Miyetti Allah group, and representatives from the Youth Council of Bassa LGA.
“They focused on sustaining peace and discussed how the 17-member peace committee strengthens dialogue, reconciliation, and coexistence between the two communities.
“Dr Essiet reiterated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to peace and inclusive governance, noting that the Community-Based Peace Structure serves as a key instrument for grassroots unity, dialogue, and long-term stability in the North Central region.
“A quick win in the peace efforts was the resolution of the conflict between David Toma, the owner of Agha Farm in Gyel district of Jos South and some herdsmen. Toma seized two cows following the destruction of his farm.
“On November 15, the MACBAN Chairman of BASSA LGA, Alhaji Isah Yau, paid a compensation of N500,000 to Toma, who subsequently released the cows. All parties signed an undertaking to embrace peace in the state.”
Dachomo and Essiet address widows
VOCAL CLERIC
Dachomo has long been vocal about the killings in Plateau and other parts of the north-central region.
A recent video of his remarks at the burial of victims of violent attacks in Heipang community went viral on social media.
The cleric has consistently claimed that Christians are being “terrorised and persecuted” in northern Nigeria.
He recently stated that he is prepared to take Nigeria to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“The world needs to know that what we are saying is not false. I will go to any length to prove that this government is lying,” he told PUNCH.
The presidential aide’s engagement comes amid renewed debate over allegations of Christian persecution in Nigeria.
The issue intensified after United President Donald Trump threatened military action against Nigeria over the claims.
Trump has also labelled Nigeria a “country of particular concern” regarding religious freedom.
The federal government, however, has denied allegations of religiously motivated killings.