To arrest the drastic drift to chaos and anarchy, particularly in the embattled Plateau and Benue states, North-Central axis of the country, the Tinubu-led government must act swiftly. It must contain the menace of gun-toting herdsmen, which has led to unabated blood-letting in recent years.
Political office holders should be reminded that the primary purpose of setting up a government is to protect the lives of the citizens and provide for their welfare, as patently enshrined in Section 14 (2) (b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
A retrospective look at the newspaper headlines of the gory tales of killings in 2023 alone would, perhaps, paint part of the life-decimating, horrendous picture.
For instance, on May 23, 2023, the media was awash with the heart-rending piece of news. In Plateau state, “About 130 people were killed and 1,000 buildings burnt with 22 villages affected!” Expectedly, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) condemned the barbaric acts and called for thorough investigations. But the massacres continued!
On June 12, 2023, another terrifying report stated that “21 killed as gunmen attack Plateau communities.” And on June 18, 2023, 13 other people were killed in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area.
On July 9, 2023, over 100 people were murdered in Mangu and Riyom local councils of Plateau state by terrorists.
In response, political representatives from Plateau state declared to their constituents that “It’s lawful to defend yourselves against attacks.” If that statement does not indicate the low level of the confidence reposed in the police by the people of Plateau state, what else would?
In fact, as far as the indigenous people of the once acclaimed Food Basket of the Nation, Benue state, are concerned, government as a protective father-figure is more surreal than real. And there is sufficient evidence to justify their position.
For instance, on April 9, 2023, former President Muhammadu Buhari lamented the scary orgy of violence, as 400 people were brutally sent to their early graves in three weeks! As usual, he urged the DSS, army and the police to go after the perpetrators – of course, without results!
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On March 13, 2023, the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BSEMA) had revealed to the nation that over 5,138 defenceless citizens were killed in the state by armed herders in seven years!
In another orgy of violence on July 8, 2023, an unknown armed gang killed 27 people, including mourners in Adogo Ugbaam, Akpuuna and Diom communities of Benue state, before razing down some markets!
On the eve of 2023 Christmas, Plateau state was revived as a killing field, as over 150 residents were brutally murdered by suspected herdsmen. The killing spree in Mangun, Bokkos and Barki-Ladi Local Government Areas left over 10,000 villagers displaced in one fell swoop. Again, on April 18, 2024, scores of villagers, mainly women, in Pushit District, Mangun Local Government Area, were brutally murdered by suspected herdsmen and their property destroyed.
On March 7, 2024, some herders invaded a Benue community with guns and machetes and murdered tens of villagers in cold blood. The herders’ killing spree was taken a notch higher between Saturday, 13th April and Monday, 15th April, 2024, when they reportedly killed 28 villagers, including six members of the Benue State Community Volunteer Guards in Gwer-West Local Government Area of the state.
There is no let-up in the impunity of the herdsmen. Currently, about 150 communities in Plateau state are said to be illegally occupied by armed herders; they have uprooted the original owners from their ancestral lands.
On Wednesday, June 26, 2024, Amnesty International, AI, released a report on the savagery of herdsmen in Benue state. It noted that “50 rural communities in the state recorded at least 135 attacks leading to the deaths of over 2,600 people, many of whom are women and children. This has left hundreds displaced, wounded, raped and others kidnapped. Benue state has 23 Local Government Areas, LGAs, of which 18 have been affected by insecurity and face continuous attacks by armed attackers. These attacks are significantly affecting food security and livelihood, because the affected communities are farmers and displacement makes them unable to carry out any farming activity.”
Our deep concern in all of these preventable tragedies is that the previous Buhari-led administration turned a deaf ear to the several pleas from the then Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue and his traumatized people not only to declare the gun-toting herders as terrorists but get them prosecuted.
Rather, the former president routinely watched on as defenceless citizens were wantonly wasted in their own farmlands by the armed herders in order to forcefully take over their land. Thereafter, ex-President Buhari would shed crocodile tears! This must not be allowed to continue.
The Tinubu-led government should muster the political will to call for a holistic investigation into the killings and the prosecution of all those involved. Any herder, indeed any citizen, caught with AK-47 or any prohibited weapon must be promptly arrested and prosecuted. The federal government must end the macabre culture of complicit silence and appeasement of the gun-toting herdsmen, who have ravaged the entire landscape of the country in recent years.
