A leader of the Tiv nation and the chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, Wantaregh Unongo
Olalekan Adetayo, John Charles, Justin Tyopuusu, Umar Muhammed
Many residents of Makurdi in mourning
gathered on Thursday at the IBB Square as bodies of the victims of the
Fulani herdsmen attacks of January 1 and 2, 2018, in parts of Benue
State were given a mass burial.
Offices, commercial banks, markets and
schools were closed in the state capital as the government had, a day
earlier, declared Thursday, a work-free day in honour of the 73 victims.
Many of those who attended the requiem shed tears as they lamented incessant attacks on residents of the state by herdsmen.
A leader of the Tiv nation and the
chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, Wantaregh Unongo, said if
President Muhammadu Buhari failed in his responsibility of protecting
lives and property of Benue citizens, the people would train their own
army in the state to defend them.
Unongo recalled that a large number of Benue sons and daughters were among the contingents that fought the Nigerian civil war.
“Benue people sacrificed blood for the
unity of this country and will not allow a section of Fulani herdsmen to
kill our people in cold blood.
He said, “I am telling Nigerians that my
people cannot continue to be cannon fodder for this country. If the
government can’t protect us, we will mobilise and train our people into
an army to defend us. We are 100 per cent in support of what Governor
Samuel Ortom has done. I am the spiritual and ancestral leader of the
Tiv nation; enough is enough.”
Unongo stressed that the entire people
of the state were watching President Buhari and had joined in the
persistence calls by Ortom that the Federal Government should take
drastic steps to urgently address the killings and also arrest the
leader of Miyetti Allah Kautal Houre.
“If the Federal Government cannot stop
or arrest those behind the killings; in two weeks, we shall raise an
army of our own. We cannot allow people to colonise us again, we have
all it takes to do that,” Unongo said.
Also speaking, a former military
governor of Plateau and Katsina states, Maj. Gen. Lawrence Onoja(retd.),
who described the killings in the state as genocidal conspiracy against
the Benue people, emphasised that the killings must not continue.
The Benue-born general said, “Some of us, in 1966, fought the Nigerian
civil war; Benue has contributed to the unity of this country. If the
Federal Governmrnt refuses to address the killings in Benue and if we
decide to raise our army as advocated by our elders to defend ourselves,
l will not mind to command that army despite my age.”
He appealed to the government at the centre to replicate Operation Python Dance or Fulani Dance
in Benue as being done in other states of the federation. He urged sons
and daughters of the state to rally round the governor for the
successful enforcement of the anti-open grazing law.
A former member of the National
Assembly, Senator J.K.N. Waku, maintained that the Benue people were
known for peace, love and honour.
He said, ‘’It is unfortunate that
someone would oppose a law that is legally enacted and begin to kill and
the Federal Government will refuse to make arrests to end the carnage.
The provocation is enough; nobody has the monopoly of killing.’’
Speaking on behalf of the Benue State
House of Assembly, the Majority leader, Benjamin Adenyi, expressed
sadness that Buhari came to Benue State during electioneering and after
he was elected, he looked the other way while Benue people were being
killed.
A former governor of Benue State, George
Akume, urged Buhari to declare a faction of the Miyietti Allah as
terrorists, saying the action of its members showed they were
terrorists.
He appealed to people living in Benue
communities not to take the law into their own hands, but follow the
path of peace and reconciliation.
The representative of the United
Nations, Dr Mathins Ejibike, offered his condolences to the government
and people of the state, saying what was happening in Benue required
international attention.
“We want an enlightened approach to this matter. We should pray that this killing should be the last in Benue State.”
He stated that the UN had received a
report that over 20,000 refugees were already in camps and promised that
the body would look into their plight.
In his speech, the paramount ruler of
Tiv nation, Prof. James Ayatse, claimed that Tiv people residing in
Nasarawa and Taraba states were being killed by Fulani herdsmen on a
daily basis since the Benue killings started.
“We must put an end to these killings. This is the 47th time that Fulani people would attack the Benue people.”
The paramount ruler enjoined Ortom to
continue to do the needful in his bid to bring peace to the state,
saying the Benue traditional rulers were behind the governor.
Ortom, in his remarks, said the latest killing was the most heartless.
He said, “If the herdsmen think that the
killing of our people will make us to stop the enforcement of the law,
they have failed. We will not be deterred because I am ready to pay the
supreme price for the implementation of the anti-open grazing law. I
will continue to insist on the arrest of the factional leader of Miyetti
Allah Kautal Houre.”
Ortom rejected the idea of creating a cattle colony or grazing routes for herdsmen.
He said the suggestions were not acceptable to the Benue people.
He explained that the state did not have adequate land for farmers, not to talk of space for grazing.
Also speaking, the state Chairman,
Christian Association of Nigeria, Rev. Akpe Leva, commended the
governor for signing the anti-open grazing law.
Taraba anti-open grazing law starts Jan 24, death toll hits 60
The Taraba State Governor, Mr. Darius
Ishaku, has said the state anti-open grazing law is not targeted at any
religious group or tribe.
In a statement by his Senior Special
Assistant on Public Affairs, Emmanuel Bello, the governor explained
that the law was colour blind.
The statement explained that the
implementation of the Taraba State Anti-Open Grazing and Ranches
Establishment Law, which was enacted in June 2017, was expected to
commence on January 24, 2018, at the expiration of the six months grace
period.
Ishaku in the statement noted that
cattle ownership in Taraba State was not the exclusive preserve of any
religion, tribe or group, adding that the law was to, among other
things, change the mode of production of cattle for better yield.
“This is a step towards keeping with the
best tradition of cow production all over the world. Agriculture is
undergoing a revolution. Antiquated means of production is giving way to
better methods with the use of tractors and better seedlings, among
other things.
“This can happen to cattle rearing too.
The ancient method of nomadic voyages has failed to give better milk
production or even beef. Cows are leaner and less productive when made
to go through the rigours of long distant treks. Elsewhere, ranching has
become the best form of attending to the need of cattle in the world.
“Even here in Nigeria, top cow owners
have seen the wisdom in ranching. In Taraba, cow owners on the Mambilla
have been engaging in a form of ranching, dating into the past. It is
nothing new to us and I enjoined all to key into it,” the statement read
in part.
Meanwhile, the death toll in the last
weekend attack on several communities in the Lau Local Government Area
of Taraba State has risen to 60.
Residents on Wednesday had put the
figure at 56, but four more bodies were said have been later recovered
by some youths and hunters from Katibu and Didango villages.
Dauda Marafa, a community leader and a
civil servant with the Taraba State Government told one of our
correspondents on the telephone that the four bodies were recovered when
the youth went back to the villages to check for more of the missing
persons.
“The bodies were recovered on Wednesday
evening, but could not be buried until today (Thursday) because the
youths were attacked by some gunmen.
“We mobilised a team of soldiers who
accompanied the youths and some family members of the deceased for
burial at Katibu. The situation in the area is still fearful,” he said.
The state police spokesman, David Missal, said he had yet to get any update on the crisis in Lau LGA.
“I am not aware of any attack and
recovery of more bodies in the area because have not received any
briefing from the Divisional Police Officer from the area,” he said.
‘Benue attack displaces 18,000 people in Nasarawa’
The Nasarawa State Government said over
18,000 people in the state were displaced due to a spillover from the
killings in Benue State.
The Special Adviser to Governor Umaru
Al-Makura on Security Matter, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Adeka (retd.), stated
this at a press conference on Thursday in Lafia, the Nasarawa State
capital.
Adeka said the reports received showed
that the spillover of the attacks on some communities in Benue State led
to the displacement of many people in the border towns between the two
states.
Adeka said, “Currently, there are over
18,000 Internally Displaced Persons from various communities in the Awe
and Keana local government areas who are in 11 camps in the state.”
He said security had been beefed up in
the affected areas, adding that the government had set up mobile clinics
in the IDPs camps.
Herdsmen’s attacks predate Buhari, Presidency says
The Presidency on Thursday insisted that
it is unkind and incorrect to continue to blame Buhari for the recent
violence unleashed on some states, including Benue, by suspected
herdsmen.
The information was contained in a
document titled, ‘Federal Response to the Attacks and Killings by
Herdsmen in Benue and other States,’ made available by the Media Office
of the Presidency.
The document read, “Insinuations and
allegations that the attacks and killings are happening because
President Buhari is Fulani are both unkind and incorrect.
“These attacks long predated the Buhari
government. In 2013, no fewer than nine cases of herdsmen attacks were
recorded in Benue State alone, with more than 190 people killed.
“In 2014, there were no fewer than 16 recorded attacks in Benue, which claimed more than 230 victims.
“Between January and May 2015, six attacks left more than 300 people dead, again in Benue State alone.”
The media office explained that the
historical context was important for a proper understanding of the
issue, and to avoid unnecessarily politicising of what should be
regarded and dealt with as acts of criminality.
“These attacks have been a longstanding issue, and successive governments have struggled to contain the situation.
“The Buhari administration is more than
fully committed to bringing the cycle of violence to an end, prosecuting
the attackers, and preventing further killings and attacks.
“The security agencies have standing
instructions to arrest and prosecute any and all persons found with
illegal arms,” the statement added.
According to the document, the recent
killings in Benue and Taraba states have elicited many federal responses
contrary to claims that nothing is being done.
It recalled that Buhari had met with the
Benue State governor on the matter to assure him of the Federal
Government’s commitment to protecting farmers and communities.
It added that the President had directed the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, to relocate to Benue State.
“On Monday January 8, 2018, the Minister
of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, convened a security meeting on the
issue, bringing together federal and state government officials:
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, heads of security
agencies, and the governors of the most affected states; Adamawa, Benue,
Kaduna, Nasarawa, and Taraba.
“Since the first week of January,
immediately following the January 1 attacks, the Inspector General of
Police has deployed the following to the affected areas: 10 units of
PMF, Police Special Forces, Counter Terrorism Units, conventional
policemen, Police Explosive Ordinance Department, Special Police Joint
Intelligence and Investigation Team and Police Aerial Surveillance Team
(police helicopters).
“The Nigerian Army has deployed Special Forces to Benue, Taraba, and Nasarawa States.
“In Benue State, eight suspected herdsmen are in police custody over the recent killings, and are currently being prosecuted.
“The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and
Rural Development is working to establish cattle colonies across the
country in 2018. These colonies will provide grass and water for the
cattle, as well as education and health care facilities for herders.
They will also have agro-rangers deployed to secure the facilities,” it
added.