The Mwaghavul Development Association has called for an urgent investigation into the latest violence in Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, alleging that more than 28 members of its communities have been killed in less than 10 days.
The association also disputed accounts circulating on social media about the latest violence in Kikyau Village, saying some reports failed to provide the circumstances that preceded the confrontation.
In a statement signed by its Director of Public Affairs, Friday Derwam, after a joint meeting of the association’s national executive, women and youth leaderships, the MDA alleged that the violence followed the killing and decapitation of a resident identified as Geofrey Kato Gumut.
According to the group, armed attackers surrounded Kikyau and killed Gumut, whose body was later found without its head.
The association claimed that youths searching for the missing head followed a trail of blood towards a nearby Fulani settlement, where they demanded the return of the remains.
It alleged that the occupants of the settlement responded violently, leading to the confrontation.
However, the MDA’s account of the incident, including its claims about the identity of the attackers and the sequence of events, has not been independently verified.
The group said the Kikyau incident occurred shortly after the killing of 24 people in Bin Mper, bringing, according to its account, the number of Mwaghavul people killed in Mangu within 10 days to more than 28.
It further alleged that more than 750 Mwaghavul people had been killed in attacks across the area since 2023, including residents attacked in their homes and farmers allegedly ambushed while working on their farms.
The association also rejected claims over the existence or ownership of alleged enclaves within Mwaghavul territory.
“No portion of Mwaghavul land has been legally ceded, sold, or transferred to the aggressors, whether under formal law, customary arrangements, or any recognised agreement,” it said.
The MDA said the Mwaghavul had historically lived alongside other communities through coexistence and intermarriage but alleged that relations had increasingly deteriorated into violence, displacement and disputes over land.
It urged security agencies to investigate the Kikyau incident and other killings in Mangu, identify those responsible and prosecute them.
The association also called on the Plateau State and Federal Governments to strengthen security around vulnerable farming communities and take action against armed groups operating illegally in the area.
The group urged journalists and members of the public to exercise caution when reporting competing accounts of the violence and rely on evidence established through credible investigations.
The MDA said it remained committed to protecting the lives, ancestral lands and dignity of the Mwaghavul people while seeking an evidence-based determination of responsibility for the recurring violence.
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