This is not the best of times for the people of Benue State who have been traumatized by attacks from people
suspected to be Fulani mercenaries.
From the southern parts of Benue State to the the north-east, the state has suddenly become a threater of war courtesy of the unending bloodbath arising from the incursions by armed mercenaries who camouflage as herdsmen..
The attacks have also left in their trail a huge refugee situation with monumental consequences on the socio-economic life of the people.
More pathetic is the situation in Guma local government area where almost the entire local government area has been taken over by the invaders who allegedly launch their attacks from neighbouring Nasarawa State.
There is no gainsaying that Benue is certainly in a state of war. There is heightened tension across the state and the state government seemed to have been overwhelmed by the situation.
In fact, on Tuesday, Governor Gabriel Suswam got a bitter dose of the crisis when he escaped death by the whiskers after his convoy was ambushed by suspected Fulani mercenaries who engaged his security aides in exchange of gunfire at Tee-Akanyi village in Guma local government area.
This came after the invaders had sacked about 200 villages on the Daudu-Gbajimba axis of the council, killing and beheading no fewer than 30 persons whose corpses littered the communities.
Suswam had, alongside the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Terhile Ayua, the Benue State Commissioner of Police, Adams Audu, soldiers, and other security personnel embarked on an assessment tour of communities recently invaded by the herdsmen on Daudu-Gbajimba Road.
On getting to Uikpam-Mbabai, the governor and his entourage discovered that the marauders had attacked and pulled out of the community that very morning, after sacking the police station in the town, burning houses, barns and beheading over 30 persons.
The governor and his team were however taken aback when the military personnel on the tour decided to pull out on the grounds that they were not detailed to travel with the team to Gbajimba.
The decision of the soldiers did not deter Suswam who insisted on making the trip to Gbajimba which had been cut off from the rest of the local government by the invaders.
From that point, majority of those on the entourage were overwhelmed by fear. The truth is that majority of the persons on that trip would have opted out but for the courage of the governor which kept everyone going.
It was while Suswam’s convoy was heading to Umenger village, about 30kilometers from Daudu, that the team discovered that arms wielding herdsmen with thousands of cattle had taken over all villages on that axis, grazing and looting the property of the locals who had deserted their homes.
It became clear to the team they could be walking into a trap as the vast land was in complete control of the stern looking young herders.
The entourage ran into attack on Tse-Akenyi village where fire was still raging in several houses in the community, while the attackers continued with the looting of the property of their victims.
However, the entourage did not realize that the marauders had taken cover in some of the abandoned houses and bush and, while Suswam alighted from his car and was busy inspecting the destruction in the community, heavy gunfire came from the bush.
The rat-a-tat of the gunfire came suddenly, but men of the police and those of the Civil Defense Corps around put up a brave response.
Suswam and the Commissioner of Police, Audu, showed uncommon bravery. They stood like battle field commanders and gave orders to security personnel while the gunfire raged.
The exchange of gunfire lasted close to one hour. Suswam was shepherded into his official vehicle by security details when the shooting subsided and the entourage drove straight to Gbajimba, where the governor addressed the locals.
He lamented the spate of attacks on the people of the state by suspected Fulani herdsmen and assured displaced persons that government would not abandon them.
Meantime, on his way back from the assessment tour, Suswam picked the remains of some beheaded victims to the mortuary in Makurdi, the state capital.
The following day, the governor, accompanied by the state Commissioner of Police, paid a visit to Anyii and Ayilamo in Logo local government which had also been invaded by marauders..
Anyii is Suswan’s home town; the community had been sacked by suspected Fulani mercenaries who invaded the communites after crossing River Benue from Nasarawa State.
Death in farms
The invaders slaughtered over 22 persons.
The governor was moved to tears when he saw that his village had been sacked and deserted.
From Anyii to Ayilamo, a stretch of about 25 kilometers, all the inhabitants of the close to 29 village had been sacked by suspected herdsmen who struck less than 24 hours before the governor’s visit.
One of the fleeing locals, who gave his name as James Terzungwe, recounted their experience to Sunday Vanguard. “They came from Nasarawa State after crossing River Benue which separates the bordering communities of Benue and Nasarawa,” he stated.
“They stormed our communities in their hundreds, when people were already in their farms. That was why many of the people were killed because they were caught up in the farms where it was very difficult for them to escape or jointly defend themselves.
“That attack left over 22 of our people dead. Those are the ones we have seen, many are still missing and nobody knows about their condition because we gathered that so many corpses are still in the farms and the bush near the river, but no one can go near there for now because the Fulani have completely taken over those areas,” he said.
While addressing the displaced persons at Ayilamo, Suswam, who urged them to be security conscious, assured them that government was partnering the Federal Government to ensure that the crisis was brought to an end.
The Governor also promised to establish displaced persons camps in parts of the state to cater for the Internally Displaced Person, IDPs, in areas affected by the crisis.
Meantime, Governor Tanko Al’Makura of Nasarawa State paid a visit to his Benue State counterpart, Suswam, on Thursday, to commisserate with him on the attack. He stated that the invaders couldn’t have come from his state.
Al’Makura stated that though Nasarawa borders Benue, “herdsmen pass through from the South and the North and the natural direction must be Nasarawa.”
The governor went on: “And it is so unfortunate that at the point at which these people are passing, there is a section in Nasarawa that is close to three states. There is a particular local government in Nasarawa that has boundaries with Plateau, Benue and Taraba and there is a large expanse of land where there is no road.
“So it is not easy or practicable that the movement of these nomads in the wilderness can be monitored except if we have an aerial survellance to track them and know where they are settled.
“And another thing is that we in Nasawara State are not even speared. We also have our own share of the problem on daily basis. It is not as if we have anything whatsoever to do with the attacks. We are also trying to contain their insurgency in our state.
“That is the reason we must all come together to appreciate the reality of this problem, we must come together to seek ways of ending this crisis.”
In his response, Suswam lamented the manner the herdsmen invade Benue communities with thousands of herds, stressing that the people behind the bloodbath were certainly not herdsmen but terrorists
The Benue governor went on: “The kind of weapons these people carry were not ordinary. The herds of cow I saw on the they I was attacked was unimaginable and the manner of the attack clearly showed that they were terrorists.
“They are displacing our people and occupying their land. I have spoken to the President on the need that those people have to be unsettled from those communities and quickly too.
“My fear is that if they are allowed to continue with these dastardly acts and successfully occupy those villages, they might use those communities as launching pad to destabilize our states.
“My fear also is that this problem could become hydra headed if we do not stand up now and take action; we could all be consumed if our people are not saved and are forced to defend themselves.
‘We are overwhelmed’
“The truth is that the situation we have found ourselves in Benue is overwhelming, the security personnel have also been overwhelmed by the situation, emotions are running high and their is heightened tension in our state.
“On our part as a government, i have spent so much money on security issues since I assumed office, I have held meetings with the Sultan of Sokoto and everybody that matters. I have done everything humanly possible but it seems we are not making progress.
“Children have been chased out of schools while many have lost one or both of their parents in these unwarranted senseless attacks.
“My fear is that this might degenerate to an ethnic crisis because no tribe will sit down and watch while the home of its paramount ruler is sacked and destroyed by heavily armed invaders.
“That is why I am pleading with the Federal Government to step into this matter before the situation gets out of hand because there is palpable tension everywhere after this last attack.
“We cannot allow the people to take up arms to defend themselves because if that is done we will be faced with a terrible situation where arms will be everywhere and we will be faced with a more serious and dangerous problem.
“We certainly need the assistance of the military because those doing these are heavily armed, and they ave no respect for human life.”
Meanwhile, the Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba More, who also visited Suswam, condemned the attack on him, describing it as barbaric and callous.
“The obvious intention of the criminals and unpatriotic elements and forces behind the dastardly attack is to create unnecessary tension in the land ahead of the 2015 general elections as well as set back the progress the President Jonathan- led government has recorded in the fight against terrorism and all forms of violence across the country “, the minister said.
In his reaction to the killings, a university don, whose home town, Ahentse village of Nzorov ward, was sacked, Dr. Frank Kyungun, lamented that the Federal Government has not done enough to protect the lives and property of the people of Benue State.
Conspiracy
“This is a clear conspiracy against the Tiv nation. The story would have been different today if Governor Suswam were killed in that attack, perhaps the crisis would have snowballed to something else,” he stated.
Sunday Vanguard gathered that the invasion of Tiv communities by Fulani herdsmen dates back to 1989 when the then paramount ruler of Nzorov, Chief Iordye Akaahena, was killed by the herdsmen after which a heavy bloodbath erupted.
This lasted for two years; then the crisis was resolved and the Fulani were allowed to return to Nzorov in Gume local government to settle and graze.
After the return of the herders, the natives lived with them in Guma communities until three years ago when the herders launched a fresh attack on Akor village in Nzorov Ward where1 7 persons were killed and the village razed.
Same day, Tse-Ormeagh, Tse-Kondom, Tom-Ayin and Iyordye were burnt down by rampaging herdsmen.
After the attack, the village was deserted as the natives fled to Gbajimba, the headquarters of the council, for safety.
Days after, the mercenaries stormed Akoroko, Ahentse village and the entire Nzorov ward, the home town of the Minister of State Trade and Investment and Supervising Minister of Aviation, Chief Samuel Ortom, which was sacked and occupied by the marauders.
From that point, the entire Guma local government came under siege.
The invaders established their attack base at Nzorov from where it attacked the Ihiarev part of Guma and Gwer West local government areas of the state.
Then, they stormed the village of the paramount ruler of Tiv land, HRH Ochivere Alfred Akawe Torkula..
The attack, reportedly carried out by over 700 Fulani mercenaries, left over 40 persons dead while three villages, including, Tse-Torkula, Angyom and Tse-Usenda all in Guma local government area of the state were sacked.
The attackers proceeded to Kasyo and Umenge towns same day and razed them. The next target was Daudu along Makurdi-Lafia Road sacking the communities leaving a huge refugee camp in Guma.
Sacking police barracks
Communities in Makurdi local government area were not spared by the invaders.
Adeke and Adaka on the outskirts of the towns were invaded by arms wielding mercenaries who sacked the communities which houses the Mobile Police Barracks.
Before these attacks, Agatu and Gwer West local governments were killing fields where attackers sent the natives packing after killing over 126 farmers and occupying their farmlands and homes.
Only recently, displaced persons settlement camps were set up for over 15,000 persons in neigbouring Kogi state after coordinated attacks on Agatu and Gwer West local government areas.
Kwande local government was also not spared,; it was gathered that over 25 perons were killed in that axis by Fulani mercenaries who invaded Jato Aka from Kashimbila, a community bordering Cameroon
In the last one week, Makurdi has witnessed the influx of over 50,000 displaced persons who fled bloody clashes in communities in Guma local government area.
There is no gainsaying that the unending tale of the invasion of Benue communities by suspected Fulani mercenaries have become an albatross of some sort that needs the urgent intervention of government.
The crisis has reached a boiling point. If the Federal Government fails to intervene and quickly too, the people might be forced to take up arms to defend themselves. This could snowball to ethnic crisis capable of sparking off the mother of bloodbath in Benue.
BY PETER DURU, MAKURDI
