President Muhammad Buhari on Monday paid a condolence visit to Benue, a state which has been witnessing gruesome killings since the New Year. JOHNSON BABAJIDE writes on why the killings have continued despite military presence.
THOUGH President Muhammad Buhari’s visit to Benue State was expected to bring an end to the senseless killings in Benue State, hardly does a day pass by without report of killings in parts of the state. The killings have now been extended to security personnel drafted to the state to protect lives and property as two personnel of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, were killed within Guma axis not long ago. Also, about seven mobile police men had been hacked down since the crisis started. Further report shows that no fewer than 161 persons have been murdered since the attacks on Benue started on the New Year day.
Official statistics indicated that after the mass burial of 73 victims of the New Year attack, 65 persons were also murdered in the ongoing killings in Guma and Logo Local Government areas, while another 26 persons were killed in cold blood at the sleepy Omusu Edimoga community in Okpokwu Local Government Area of the state. To worsen the matter, herdsmen invaded Mbatholo community on an island in Makurdi Local Government Area of the state and ordered inhabitants to move out of their ancestral home, while the invaders have since occupied the community of over 5,000 people, feeding on the food left behind. The irony, however, is that the attacks have continued despite military presence in the state.
It appears that the more the president talks, the more the killings take place in Benue and some parts of the country. For instance, the president had made serious statements, which ought to have instilled fear in the marauders, but the killings go on unabated.
On February 20, in line with the directive of the president to stop the senseless killings of Nigerians, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen. Tukur Burutai flagged off exercise Cat Race, otherwise known as ‘Ayem a Kpatuma, in the state. Unlike other operations carried out in other parts of the country, Burutai said that Cat Race was a joint training exercise which would help to familiarise the troops to the challenge of internal security.
‘Ayem a’ Kpatuma is an exercise that will help familiarise our troops to the challenge of internal security and this is jointly being conducted with other security agencies, especially the police, DSS and other paramilitary organizations,” he said.
The CoAS further said that the Cat Race had become necessary with the rise in criminal activities such as armed robbery, banditry, kidnapping, herdsmen and farmers clashes across the country. “It is our expectations that at the end of the exercise, things will be normalised. This is a way of contributing our own quotas to ensure that we support the civil authority and ensure that peace is restored in the country,” Burutai stressed.
But rather for the killings to abate, it is increasing, fueling speculations that the herdsmen have the backing of the powers that be that be. For instance, herdsmen who had moved out of the state in droves following the implementation of the anti open grazing law in the state in November 2017, had been relocating to Benue State. The state governor, Samuel Ortom, made allusion to this recently when he raised alarm on the influx of cows and herders into the state despite military presence. Residents of Agatu communities especially, were said to be living in palpable fear following the influx of cattle.
“We appreciate President Buhari for the deployment of soldiers to the state to keep peace, but our concern is the influx of over one million of cows into the state despite the presence of military personnel, Ortom said when he led the senior pastor of Dunamis International Gospel Center, Pastor Paul Eneche, to the grave site.
Some of the communities, especially those attacked in 2016, however, have already been provoked by herdsmen who had invaded the areas with their cows. Some of the areas are: Obagaji, Aila, Okokolo, Ochonlanja, Olegeje and Ochelefu at Ochelefu.
Groups react to provocation by herdsmen
Socio cultural groups in the state, Mdgzou U Tiv, Idoma National Forum and On’yi Igede, expressed concern over exercise Cat Race, saying it encouraged herdsmen to flood the state with their cows despite the anti open grazing law in place.
According to the spokesman of the amalgam of groups, Chief Edward Ujege, the continuous killings and influx of herdsmen into the state is because of the fliers in circulation in the state, purportedly emanating from the military, but which was written in Tiv language .
“The publication of the pamphlet in the Tiv language gives the impression that the Tiv are the target of the exercise, whereas the herdsmen attack cut across the entire Benue state, which is multi ethnic,” he said. The military, however, in a swift reaction, said that the offensive pamphlet was “to convey a message on the need for farmers and herdsmen to live together in peace”.
Also the commander, Benue State Livestock Guard, Alhaji Aliyu Tershaku, said Cat Race is responsible for the current influx of herdsmen into the state, as well as the killings after the mass burial of 73 victims of herdsmen attack.
Another group, Independent Human Rights and Crime Monitoring Group, after carrying out an independent assessment of the military to determine whether the military adhere to rules of engagement, submitted that the Cat Race exercise had enhanced the movement of more Fulani herdsmen and millions of cows into the state. Its leader, Solomon Adodo, said; “herdsmen who had left the state following the enactment of the open grazing law, have suddenly found the courage to invade the state in droves. Since the military’s Cat Race commenced, “more communities have been destroyed. Mbalah ward has been sacked completely and 5,000 people displaced under the supervision of the military, Fulani cows have been feeding on yams and crops in the area.
“In southern Makurdi, Fulani cows graze openly without any arrest made by military or police.
“In Agatu communities, several thousands of cows graze openly with impunity as indigenes watch helplessly. Residents are already fleeing into communities in large numbers on a daily basis for fear of herdsmen attack,” the group lamented.
Though Governor Ortom insisted that anti open grazing remains the best global practice, he urged President Buhari to promote the prohibition of open grazing and ranching establishment laws to end herdsmen and farmers clashes, not only in Benue, but across the country. He also appealed to the president to upgrade exercise Ayem Kpatuma to operation Ayem Kpatuma that could arrest and prosecute insurgents terrorising the state under the guise of herdsmen.
Tiv paramount ruler, Tor Tiv, HRM, Professor James Ayatse, appealed to president Buhari to support the anti open grazing law, which he said was the only panacea to the constant crises between farmers and herdsmen in the state.
According to the monarch, “Mr President, if there is something that is dear to the heart of people of the state, it is the law. It is the people’s law, so do everything to support the implementation of the law.”
Second republic minister, Wautaregh Paul Unongo, said that the law was not anti Fulani. “I am a product of Fulani man from Kano, and a Tiv from Kwande. Ortom is misunderstood by some of your security agents, particularly, the leader of the police. If you and your security officer don’t support him, he could well be hurt.”
Former military governor of Benue State, Atom Kpera had said during the visit: “your Excellency, the IG did not do what you asked him to do here. He stayed less than 24 hours and relocated to Nasarawa. Mr President, have a second thought on what your IG told you and on which you swiftly acted by setting up the exercise Ayem Akpatuma.
“Our expectation was that this additional force unit was to relieve us and chase the killers away, the IG did not say that there were no killers because there was everywhere and he knew it, but he failed to act.”
The monitoring group called on the military to release its security agencies to help the state to enforce the anti open gazing law and also called on military to withdraw the pamphlets and to tender apology to people of the state for trust and confidence to be restored.
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