Jos Visit: Presidency Defends Tinubu Amid Criticism
Flight restrictions at the Yakubu Gowon Airport and a schedule overrun caused by a bilateral security meeting with the President of Chad combined to prevent President Bola Tinubu from driving into Jos township during his condolence visit to Plateau State, the Presidency said on Friday, responding to mounting public criticism over the manner of the trip.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, provided the explanation in a statement, saying logistical and scheduling constraints shaped the final arrangement that saw victims and community representatives transported to a hall near the airport to meet the President, rather than the President travelling into affected communities.
According to Onanuga, Tinubu’s itinerary for Thursday had included hosting Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno at the Presidential Villa for a bilateral meeting focused on security cooperation between Nigeria and Chad. The engagement ran beyond its scheduled time and set back the President’s departure for Plateau State. “The meeting ran longer than expected, affecting President Tinubu’s scheduled departure for Jos,” the statement said.
The President had originally planned to proceed to Iperu, Ogun State, on Thursday, but suspended that trip entirely after receiving a briefing from Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang on the security situation following the deadly attack on the Angwan Rukuba community in Jos North on Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026. Gunmen struck the area, killing at least 28 people and leaving many injured, triggering protests, a government-imposed curfew, and widespread outrage over recurring violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt.
Onanuga said that upon the President’s arrival in Jos, airport-specific operational constraints made proceeding into the city impractical. “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,” he said. “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 arranged for victims and community representatives to meet the President in a hall adjoining the airport. Among those present were the Minister of Defence, the Chief of Army Staff, and the Inspector General of Police, who had earlier visited Rukuba, identified as the epicentre of the violence.
At the meeting, Tinubu addressed a grieving mother, Mrs Rhoda, whose video clutching the bloodied corpse of her son had gone viral and become the defining image of the attack. “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,” he said.
The President announced the deployment of 5,000 AI-enabled cameras across Plateau State to strengthen surveillance, aid intelligence gathering, and support the identification and arrest of perpetrators. He also constituted a committee to assess losses and provide compensation, and invited community leaders to Abuja for further discussions.
The visit drew criticism from opposition figures. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, in a statement by his aide Phrank Shaibu, described the visit as insensitive, saying the President’s assessment “never extended beyond the airport, never reaching the grieving communities, and never touching the pain of the victims,” and that the visit had been hurriedly curtailed to allow Tinubu to proceed to Lagos for the Easter holidays.
The Presidency maintained the visit achieved its objectives. “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.