Benue Massacre: President Buhari, It Is Time To Wake Up!

By Akombo Aondona
For half a decade now, the North –Central state of Benue has been under attacks by Fulani herdsmen. This phenomenon is leaving no oxygen for the residents of the North-central state to breath.
Historically, the Tiv people of Benue State and Fulani herdsmen lived together peacefully. But today, the situation has changed due to several factors that combined to pitch the two groups against each other, leading to the counter-attacks that have claimed lives on both with properties worth hundreds of millions of naira destroyed.
On assumption of office in 2015 as the Benue State governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom sought and granted amnesty to the armed youths in the state under his amnesty programme to end the reprisal attacks.
The Amnesty programme made initial progress with the surrendering of arms by some notorious youths, including their most wanted leader, Terwase Agwaza Alias “Gana”.
At the beginning of his government, PDP chieftains were killed including Atoza Hindan. Then, the APC youths leader and other beneficiaries of the amnesty programme were killed in the state.
Though, President Muhammadu Buhari wholeheartedly endorsed the Benue State government Amnesty programme, it has completely failed to achieve its purpose of ending the attacks due to the President silence and other factors.
In the latest round attacks, which started in Agatu Local Area with the killing of 400 people in a single attack, has spread to Takaa, Markurdi, Guma, Gwer West, Logo, Katsina-Ala, Buruku, Ukum and Kwande local government areas of the state. The Fulani herdsmen move freely in the state with sophisticated weapons.
It has now become clearer that the adventure of Fulani into the state is a well planned scheme to destabilise the people of the state and possibly snatch their ancestral land by some expansionists operating under the guise of herdsmen.
Recently, the Benue State Deputy Governor, Mr. Benson Abonu, told the House of Representatives Committee on Police Affair that the constant attacks in different part of the state were targeted at occupying the area by those carrying out the attacks. “What is happening in Benue is not localized. These people intend to come to Benue, and weaken the fabric of the state”, he said.
Also, the President-General of Mzough U Tiv (MUT), Chief Edward Ujege remarks that the attacks carried out pointed to the used of sophisticated weapons. He said that they have not received any report of arrest on the attacks. He advocated for state police and stressed that those who suffered the attacks will be asking the Federal government for compensation.
Worried by these attacks, former Lagos state Police Commissioner Abubakar Tsav, blamed the elders in Benue state for maintaining a “conspiracy of silence” while the crisis lingers. He said those who were supposed to address the matter were merely playing ostrich and accused them of taking advantage of the crisis to make money.
With the recent killing of the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Samuel Ortom on security matters, Mr. Denen Igbana, it is obvious that nobody is safe in Benue. Mr. Danen Igbana was killed on the 20th May 2016 around 2:30am in his Markurdi residence by yet-to-be-unidentified gunmen.
In spite of these attacks, the President Buhari-led Federal government has remain silent on the herder/farmer attacks in the state, after enjoying the massive support from the state during the 2015 presidential election.
In his inaugural speech, President Buhari promised Nigerian before world leaders that he belonged to everybody and he belonged to nobody.
Ironically today his government is more of ethno religious and politically centered as against the collective aspirations of Nigeria. In this regard, his kinsmen have taken advantage of his government’s silence to continue to attack other communities across the country, particularly in Benue state.
President Buhari should know that his economy policies cannot be achieved with the attacks in Benue, especially now that he is trying to diversify the economy from oil to agriculture.
Buhari should also remember that, prior to his emergence as the President, the then PDP led federal government accused him of been the brain behind Boko Haram. He was labeled a religious fanatic, a leopard that cannot change his spots and many other appellations. Yet we ignored all these allegations and voted him into power after a four conservative failed attempts.
The president’s silence on herdsmen attacks indicates that, he is not fighting Boko Haram but rebranding it with a new nomenclature. The mode of herder attack is similar to that of Boko Haram.
Let Mr. President know that there is a lot of insecurity in the country to which Boko Haram is just a part. The militancy in the Niger Delta, herdsmen attacks, kidnapping among others also posed a serious threat to national security.
Therefore, the President should fight insecurity in the country squarely by taking a collective and holistic approach so that no ethnic group will take advantage over the other. Life has no duplicate and no human life is superior to the other. Life is life and criminals are criminals.
Mr. Akombo Aondona, a freelance journalist, writes from Abuja.