Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency over Nigeria’s deteriorating security situation. He made this statement yesterday while addressing the angry youths of a community in the state following an unprovoked attack on the IDP camp which left 7 dead and many others injured.
The Governor lamented that in the last two weeks, over 70 persons had been killed in Makurdi, Guma and Gwer West Local Government Areas, LGAs, while various communities across Benue were suffering from same militia herdsmen.
He called for urgent action against the activities of the killer herdsmen across the country, said if the Federal Government had taken the issue of militia herders seriously, the current deteriorating situation would have been averted.
According to the governor, the people of Benue are being overstretched and running out of patience due to the incessant attacks on their communities.
Governor Otorm said:
“From what is happening, within the last two weeks, we have lost more than 70 people within the local governments of Makurdi, Guma, and Gwer West alone, in addition to what you are seeing here today.
“Many are in the hospital apart from the seven that died in the attack on the IDPs camp by these herdsmen militia. “I want to say that we are being overstretched. Our patience and preaching of rule of law is being overstretched. You can see that the people are fed up. Mr. President must rise.
“He is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the President of the over 250 ethnic nationalities in Nigeria. They voted him, we all voted him.
“Mr. President, you took an oath of office to secure the lives and property of the people. This is unacceptable, this cannot continue. Mr. President cannot continue to be aloof. Mr. President must rise to address the nation himself, not his aides.
“Mr. President must tell us where we are headed in this country. This is too much. We are being overstretched and this is not acceptable. The body language, the action and inaction of Mr. President shows that he is only the President of Fulani people.
“I have warned over this. I have written to him and I have written to security agencies that Miyetti Allah anchored a meeting in Yola and threatened that unless we repeal the open grazing prohibition law, nobody would know peace. That they will kill, they will maim, they will rape and do all sorts of things and they have started doing it. And it is amazing that we are becoming a banana republic.
“If we have a President and Mr. President gives order to security agencies to shoot on sight whosoever is having AK-47, and then the Minister of Defence came out to say that you cannot shoot on sight, that those people should be prosecuted, then I ask, who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces?
“So this kind of game, these lies, these falsehoods that are being played out is not acceptable. It is better for me not to be alive to see this kind of shame of leadership. What is going on? Nigerians, my colleagues the governors must arise and impress on the president to call a security summit, if possible ensure that a state of emergency is declared on security so that all hands will be on deck to address this matter.
The Governor accused President Buhari of working for the Fulani tribe to take over Nigeria.
“From what is happening now, it is very clear that Mr. President is just working for these Fulanis to take over this country. His body language is what is being played out; Mr President gives orders, another person, a minister comes and counters. Is it not a shame?
“Just like the First Lady said sometimes ago, where are the men in this country? That is the President’s wife coming out to lament and cry and say that Nigerians should rise, that something is wrong.
“The President must tell us what is wrong with him so that we can all help him. I want to call on my colleagues, the governors, because after the President, it is the governors, we must work hard to ensure that we salvage this country. Otherwise, this country is drowning and we must salvage it, or else we will wake up one day and there will be no country.
Angry youths had made bonfires on the Makurdi-Lafia road, laying the corpses of the dead on the highway, and threatening to carry out reprisal attacks on fulani herdsmen.
The governor then said, “You can imagine if I was not there in Abagena, that major road (Makurdi-Lafia) was blocked. You can imagine what would have happened. We cannot allow youths to take over the place and that is what they are agitating for now. And we know that a goat does not bite, but when it is pushed to the wall, it bites.
He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to live up to his responsibility of protecting Nigerians, describing the attack as inhuman, barbaric and unacceptable.
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