Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau state has blamed the country’s persistent security challenges on the powerful and influential members of the society.

He spoke in Jos during a stakeholder meeting themed “Dialogue on Community Policing as a Panacea for Insecurity in Nigeria: The Case of Plateau State’.

Mutfwang said the challenges of insecurity is an elite created problem.

The governor emphasised that meaningful public discourse on security must be guided by honest, informed, and patriotic contributions, particularly from the elite class, who are often positioned to influence opinion and policy

While accusing the elite of fuelling communal hatred, he said they could end the security crisis through decisive and intentional leadership if they chose to.

He said: “My theory, is that more than anybody else, the challenges of insecurity in Nigeria, is an elite created problem. When the elites conspire to lead the people in the wrong direction, we will continue to have this perennial crisis.

“Many atimes, you’ll find that even when the poisoning of the mind begins in the community, when the elite takes leadership, and say it must stop, they’ll address it adequately and it will stop.

“But when the elite fan the embers of hate, they are the people that do their analysis, that begin to spew knowledge information and poison the mind of ordinary people, then it will be sustained.”

Muftwang called on the elites to take greater responsibility in promoting narratives that foster peaceful coexistence and national unity, especially in the face of the country’s prevailing security challenges.

He affirmed his resolve to dismantle the artificial barriers of faith and ethnicity that continue to hinder unity and development in Plateau State.

“As I stand before you today, I want to reiterate that I came into government with a firm resolve to restore lasting peace to Plateau. That is why I have deliberately sought to bridge the divides we’ve built across religion and ethnicity.

“Yet, as recently as yesterday, I received reports of being labelled in certain influential circles. Still, I beat my chest and say, without fear of contradiction, that I have done more than any governor since 1999 in building peace and unity on the Plateau,” he said.