Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the deadly Palm Sunday attack on the Gari Ya Waye community, Angwan Rukuba, in the Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau State, describing it as “barbaric.”

Suspected gunmen on motorcycles attacked the community on Sunday, killing many residents and injuring several others.

“I am outraged by the barbaric attack in Gari Ya Waye community, Angwan Rukuba, Jos, which claimed the lives of scores of innocent Nigerians and left many others injured,” Mr Atiku said in a statement on Monday.

The former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate lamented that the attack reflected the worsening security crisis in the country.

Mr Abubakar criticised what he called the authorities’ repeated assurances, noting that insecurity remains a persistent reality for ordinary Nigerians.

“That this heinous assault occurred on Sunday night, March 29, 2026, is yet another damning indictment of the near-total collapse of security in our country. What we are witnessing is not merely a security lapse but a tragic descent into lawlessness where human lives are treated as expendable.

“Despite endless pronouncements and so-called marching orders, insecurity remains the grim, daily reality of ordinary Nigerians who continue to bear the brunt of a failing system. It is long past the time for outrage without action,” he said. 

While calling for urgent action, Mr Abubakar stressed the need for decisive political will to tackle insecurity and end the recurring violence in the country. 

“The anger across the land must now compel urgent, decisive political will to confront and crush this menace. The continued slaughter of innocent citizens cannot become our new normal.

“My thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the victims in this dark and painful moment,” he said. 

Meanwhile, the Plateau State government imposed a 48-hour curfew on the Jos North LGA after the attack. It said the curfew would take effect from midnight on March 29 to April 1, 2026. 

Local communities in Plateau have faced violent attacks and kidnappings over the past few years.

However, the latest attack comes after some security operatives and local vigilantes were killed by suspected gunmen in the Kanam LGA of Jos.