US embassy cable - 04ABUJA1147

UNCLAS ABUJA 001147 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O.  12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, ASEC, PREL, NI 
SUBJECT: AN UNPRODUCTIVE MEETING WITH THE PLATEAU STATE SOLE 
ADMINISTRATOR 
 
REF:  ABUJA 786 
 
1.  Summary:  In a brief meeting with a Mission team, the 
Plateau State Sole Administrator (a) declined to discuss his 
plans for Plateau State, (b) facilitated a trip to visit a 
conflict-torn village in eastern Plateau State, and (c) 
berated the head of the National Refugee Commission in front 
of the Mission team. 
 
2.  Plateau State Sole Administrator General (retired) M. 
Chris Alli met with Poloff on Thursday morning, June 24. 
Also present were two visiting Econoffs from Washington, FSN 
Polspecialist, Chairman of the National Refugee Commission 
Professor Igna Gabriel, and an official from the Plateau 
State agency responsible for IDPs. 
 
3.  Poloff opened the meeting by presenting Alli a letter of 
greetings from the Ambassador.  Alli read the letter, then 
put it aside without comment and invited questions. 
 
4.  Poloff asked Alli of his general plans for Plateau State 
for the remainder of the six-month State of Emergency (SOE). 
Alli replied, "Let me ask you instead, what are your plans?" 
Poloff spoke of his human rights reporting duties, and that 
the Yelwa violence in early May (reftel) was of interest. 
Alli invited the Mission team to visit Yelwa, and said that 
he did not want to "prejudice anyone" by talking about Yelwa 
before the visit, then declined to answer any further 
questions, about the SOE or general Plateau State security 
issues. 
 
5.  Alli offered a police escort for the trip to Yelwa, and 
then berated Prof. Gabriel at length, in our presence, for 
not arranging for the security detail beforehand.  Poloff 
asked to make an appointment with Alli after the Yelwa 
visit, but Alli declined, repeating the same phrase, "go and 
see first."  Alli did assign one Mobile Police officer, who 
rode with the Mission team on the Yelwa visit later that day 
(septel). 
 
CAMPBELL