By Ezekiel Dontinna
It was quite a thrilling show with colourful display yesterday in Jos, the Capital City of Plateau State, when citizens poured out in their numbers on this special day to peacefully matched major streets in celebration of the 2024 International Peace Day.
As early as 8am, people converged at the Old Airport Junction Jos ready for the Peace Walk, one of the activities organised in commemoration of the Day by the Plateau Peace Building Agency (PPBA) in partnership with GIZ as it was supported by numerous partners.
The Peace Walk which started at the Old Airport Junction was led by the officers of Federal Road Safety Corpse (FRSC) in order to control traffic. The crowd that participated in the walk matched to Plateau Hospital Round About, dancing in styles and back to the Secretariat junction where the celebration twirled to end.
Also present where a number of skaters and para-skaters displaying their different talents. Stone-Ezel drummers who were mostly teenagers and colourfully dressed, cheerfully entertained the Peace Walk to the admiration of people as they dance although the celebration.
Other critical stakeholders and representatives of organisations like Rotary Club, peace promoting Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) under the umbrella Plateau Peace Practitioners Network (PPPN) and Youth Groups fully participated and walked to the streets enthusiastically.
The most interesting part of it all was the show of interest and commitment by these stakeholders. In fact, hardly would one differentiate between the young and old particularly, in how they matched gallantly. It truly demonstrated how prepared Plateau people were ready to sustain peace.
While speaking shortly after the Walk, the Plateau State Governor, Barr. Caleb Mutfwang, represented by his Special Adviser on Peace Building, Hon. Monday Nyam Ajiya, congratulated Plateau people for marking yet another International Peace Day celebration.
He described the celebration as very unique and well organised, commending the organisers of this year’s celebration for the job well done. “We can only have peace when we love from our hearts. I urge us to imbibe the culture of peace in our hearts.
“That is the only way we can have development in Plateau State, just as you can see in what the Governor is doing in the area of peace and the resultant benefits it has brought in terms of development everywhere. Without peace these things will go in vein”, Ajiya admonished.
Accompanied at Peace Walk, was the Special Adviser to Governor Caleb Mutfwang, on Strategic Communications, Hon. Dr. Timothy Golu, who came in solidarity with the peace celebration. He noted that this was the first time they were gathered genuinely, devoid of any political colouration to advocate peace.
“I want to appreciate the Governor and our numerous partners who believe deeply in the peace process on the Plateau. Peace is unique and you cannot do anything without peace, because it is a human item that most be prioritised.
“We need to organise ourselves since there is no complete person without peace. We need peace to organise our families and it is not optional. No human being, no family and no Nation can be an island.
“I want to tell you that, the State Government is intentional about peace movement because, if you look around, no State is giving the kind of attention to peace like Plateau. They only talk about it academically and politically, but here on the Plateau, we talk about it fundamentally from our hearts”, he enthused.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner, Gender Equality and Opportunity Commission, Barr. Olivia Dazyem, described this year’s theme: Cultivating the Culture of Peace in Plateau State”, as apt considering the precarious situation the country was faced with.
“For us in Plateau State, that has been our business, and I want to thank all Agencies and Civil Society Organisations, who have always worked tirelessly to support the peace building structure on the Plateau.
“We are very proud of the CSOs in the State and for us in Plateau State, we have identified that for us to move forward, we need to sustain our struggles in the defence of the peace structure on the Plateau”, she advocated.
Dazyem, therefore, encouraged the Civil Society Organisations to sustain partnership with Government for them to build a Plateau that would be unprecedented even with the challenges faced in recent times praying that, with God on their side, Plateau would achieve peace.
Earlier, the Director General of Plateau Peace Building Agency (PPBA), Dr. Julie Sanda, while addressing the crowd, thanked Governor Caleb Mutfwang, for the support and standing firm in the pursue of peace and believing that, conflict was just a distraction.
“We need to get together to promote social cohesion so that, we can get to work for property. That is why we are coming out to identify with peace and to make a bold statement that, we are peace loving people.
“With the history we had on the Plateau, it is important for us to replace it with the culture of peace. You know, alot has been done in different years that’s why we are reaping the fruit now, and that’s why we are standing here today”, she observed.
On her part, Muege Dilmeghani, of GIZ, commended the people and partners who sacrificed time to turn out en-masse for the International Peace Day Celebration in Jos, the Plateau State capital.
There were goodwill messages by different representatives of CDOs led by the President of the umbrella body, Plateau Peace Practitioners Network (PPPN), Ndam Bali, who graced the occasion.
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