Ex-Operation Safe Haven Commander Urges Grassroots Security Reforms, Strict Anti-Land Grabbing Enforcement to End Plateau Violence

The Chairman of the Plateau State Special Fact-Finding Committee and former Commander of Operation Safe Haven, Gen. Rogers Nicholas (retd.), has urged the federal and state governments to implement grassroots-based security reforms and strictly enforce the state’s anti-land grabbing law as a sustainable solution to the recurring violence in Plateau State.

Nicholas made the call in Abuja during a special security conference convened by the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Plateau Security, where he presented key findings and recommendations from the committee’s extensive consultations across affected communities.

He described the Plateau crisis as a deeply rooted conflict driven by historical grievances, ethnic rivalries, land disputes, open grazing tensions, poverty, youth unemployment, illegal mining, and a weak justice system. According to him, reprisal attacks stemming from farmer-herder clashes often spiral into broader communal violence.

Recalling his time as Commander of Operation Safe Haven, Nicholas noted that his team prioritised community trust-building through town hall engagements with local and Fulani leaders and introduced community-based compensation systems for losses from cattle rustling and crop damage. He lamented that the discontinuation of such measures after his tenure contributed to renewed hostilities.

Presenting the committee’s major recommendations, he called for the establishment of Peace and Security Committees in every community—led by traditional rulers and inclusive of all ethnic and religious groups—alongside the enforcement and review of the Plateau State Anti-Land Grabbing Law (2022). He also recommended the creation of designated grazing routes and ranching zones, stronger criminal justice measures with tougher penalties for crimes like cattle rustling and illegal arms possession, and an Interstate Joint Security Task Force involving Kaduna, Nasarawa, Taraba, and Bauchi States to curb cross-border attacks.

Nicholas further proposed integrating local vigilantes into formal security structures such as Operation Rainbow and improving rural communication networks to enable faster responses to security threats.

In his remarks, Chairman of the House Ad Hoc Committee, Hon. Wale Ahmed, reaffirmed the National Assembly’s determination to address the root causes of