Gov Alia, who are the politicians behind Benue killings?
On Tuesday, June 3, 2025, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, accompanied by his Principal Staff Officers (PSOs) and other top officers at Army Headquarters Abuja, were in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, underscoring the resurgent and unacceptable level of killings in the state that has left hundreds dead, many others injured […]
Gov Hyacinth Alia
On Tuesday, June 3, 2025, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, accompanied by his Principal Staff Officers (PSOs) and other top officers at Army Headquarters Abuja, were in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, underscoring the resurgent and unacceptable level of killings in the state that has left hundreds dead, many others injured and maimed, and several houses burnt and many rendered homeless.
General Oluyede came to have an on-the-spot assessment of the situation on ground, holding strategic meetings with all operational and unit commanders, visiting troops’ locations and operational bases on ways of reviewing ongoing operations and interacting with troops and boosting their morale and fighting spirit. This was much needed.
But then, in the wake of this fact- finding mission, the state governor, Hyacinth Alia, alleged that top politicians are responsible for instigating killings and harbouring and feeding those responsible for the crisis in the state.
“It is very unsettling because top politicians who are very functional and are in the National Assembly and are in Abuja, are the architects and arrowheads of not just instigating, but harbouring and keeping these people and feeding them in the bushes, and taking care of all their needs and buying all the other gadgets for them.
“This is extremely unacceptable. If they do not love the lives of the people and they’re only fighting for their own position, I think I am serving the interest of the common masses and it is a concern to me, and it is my right to protect it,” the governor said.
The Benue State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) immediately fired back, tasking the governor to identify the politicians he claimed are sponsoring killings in the state, accusing him of engaging in a counterproductive blame game.
For weeks, Benue State has been the epicentre of violence with daily reports of killings, sacking and destruction of villages. On Friday, June 6, 2025, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) expressed ‘heavy hearts and deep anguish’ saying they are ‘utterly barbaric,’ stating: “These cold-blooded attacks on defenceless communities where countless have been slaughtered, homes destroyed, and families left in anguish, are an affront to God, a stain on our shared humanity, and a terrifying reminder of the utter breakdown of security in our land.”
The anguish is that the vicious attackers go beyond elimination or wiping out families and their homes, they also go after public utilities, destroying bore holes, clinics, schools, places of worship. Nothing is sacrosanct.
For example, on Tuesday June 3, Daily Trust reported that between April 1 and June 1, 2025, at least 270 people had been killed in a relentless wave of armed attacks across 10 LGAs of the State with the most recent on June 1 claiming 43 lives in Gwer West and Apa Local Government Areas (LGAs).
The Sankera axis (Katsina-Ala, Logo and Ukum) recorded the highest death toll with 83 fatalities in five days of attacks between April 17 and April 21. Other major incidents include Otukpo LGA, where 16 people were killed in multiple attacks between April 4 and May 7.
Generally, Amnesty International says result of its investigations show that out of at least 10,217 people killed in attacks in the last two years in Nigeria, Benue accounts for the highest death toll of 6,896, followed by Plateau with 2,630.
The result is that most residents no longer feel secure and the environment is not conducive for trading, farming, and other socio-economic activities. Farming activities in some parts of the state are on standstill as farmers find it hard to go to their farms as well as to get enough food crops to the market, resulting in food insecurity and the prevailing unprecedented hike in prices of farm produce markets. Kidnapping have added a new dimension as people harbour the fear of becoming the next victims.
The reality is that the continued attacks and killings are clear evidence of moral and constitutional failure on both the government and the governed. According to Section 14(2) (b) of the Nigerian Constitution, the primary and constitutional responsibilities of all tiers of government is the security and welfare of the people and their inability to do so is confirmation of failure and negation of the goals of governance.
We at Daily Trust commiserate with the government and people of Benue on the growing brutality targeted at innocent citizens and call on the federal government to live up to its responsibilities. The defence and security agencies should enhance inter-agency collaboration and strategic deployment to flashpoints.
The federal government should deploy technological equipment including long-range drones for surveillance and intelligence-gathering. They should also adequately equip the local vigilantes in order to support the conventional defence and security forces.
The police should mobilise additional personnel including units of Police Mobile and Special Forces, the Police Aerial Surveillance Helicopters and the Special Police Joint Intelligence and Investigation Teams to this troubled state.
All arrested perpetrators of killings and destruction should be prosecuted to serve as deterrent for others. This is because the failure to hold suspected perpetrators accountable helps fuel a culture of impunity and reciprocal attacks.
But beyond the deployment of defence and security forces, the collective responsibility for peace rests with federal, state and local governments, traditional, religious, business, women and youth leaders. For now, there seems a breakdown of that consensus and the absence of leadership in that direction, more so as the attacks are primarily fueled by herders-farmers killings and destructions. Stakeholders must address the root causes of these violence urgently. Military operations alone cannot handle this.
The people of Benue must not be made to feel abandoned or neglected. There must be clear political will towards resolving the complex socio-political and economic issues that are at the core of the security challenges. There must be genuine restoration of peace, security, and protection of lives, livelihoods and properties of the people. This is time for decisive actions in order to provide conducive environment for trust and dialogue and understanding.
We specifically ask Governor Alia, who made the serious allegation that politicians are behind the killings to name them so that they would be arrested.
It is disheartening that on many occasions, those in position of authority make statements that are hanging.
The governor, using the instrument at his disposal, should lead the way and find a lasting solution to this endless bloodshed. As a leader, he must lead from the front and show the way for others to follow. Blame game is never a solution and the earlier a realistic approach is made, the better for the people of the state and the country at large.
Benue, the “Food Basket of the Nation,” has been turned to killing fields where farmers fear accessing farmlands, thereby depriving Nigeria the food Nigeria direly needs. This cannot continue. Enough of these bloodletting and destruction.