Recently, the Governors of the South West states were reported to launch regional electricity and rail projects. This comes at the back of their successful launch of their regional security outfit “Amotekun” which in the past days reportedly was able to drive out a large portion of the criminal terrorists known as “Fulani herdsmen” from their bushes.
A Middle Belt organization known as the Middle Belt Patriots, a movement focused on the economic and political emancipation of the Middle Belt people has urged the governors of the Middle Belt states to emulate their Southwest counterparts in setting up similar structures in the Middle belt.
In a statement signed by the secretary of the group Steven Kefas and made available to newsmen on Friday, Kefas said: “The Middle Belt emancipation must be multidimensional. We must not only be focused on solving the security issues in our region, but rather, we must also ensure to develop our region in terms of infrastructure and social programs.
We must strive to continue the policies of the first Middle Belt political party which went into the infamous alliance with Awolowo’s Action Group which prioritized regional solidarity, education, agriculture, and social welfare schemes for the people of the Middle Belt.
Currently, we lag behind all the Southern States and if we are to catch up with them, we need to be proactive”.
The group said its past alliance with the core north has benefited the people of the Middle Belt nothing other than blood, tears and sorrow. It said the time has come for the Middle Belt to forge a new alliance across the Niger that will benefit its people.
Residents of the Gwarinpa axis have been urged by the Federal Capital Territory, FCT police command to be calm despite the altercation between certain Hausa and Gbagyi youths.
According to the Middle belt Times newspaper, since Saturday’s altercation between the youths, which resulted in at least one person’s death, there has been a distinct sense of anxiety in the neighborhood.
The FCT Police Command said it had mobilized and sent personnel to the region to ease tension in a statement released on Monday by its spokesperson, SP Josephine Adeh.
In order to mediate peace between the Hausa and Gbagyi populations, she said that the acting commissioner of police for the region, DCP Ahmed Musa, met with traditional rulers of both communities on Monday at his office in the Command Headquarters.
According to the police spokeswoman, the commissioner and the traditional leaders discussed potential partnerships required to control youths and remove troublemakers from communities.
She claimed that the altercation between the two groups resulted in the arrest of one suspect who is now supporting the Police in their inquiries into the immediate and background causes of the conflict.
“The acting Commissioner ordered traditional leaders to consistently promote youth imbibing peace and resolving disputes through channels recognized by law.”
In her statement, the police spokesman said: “In the meantime, the Police have increased surveillance patrols in the regions for monitoring the situation to ensure that it does not further deteriorate.
“He [the acting commissioner of police] appeals to all law-abiding citizens of the FCT to go about their lawful business and to immediately report any suspicious persons, groups, or activities via Command emergency lines.”
According to reports, some terrorists attacked the Karimbu-Kahugu Village in Kaduna State’s Lere Local Government District.
The son of the Baptist resident pastor was killed in the attack on Friday morning. They also abducted his wife and three other people.
The incident was confirmed to The Middle Belt Times by Peter Mukaddas, vice chairman of the Kahugu National Development Associations.
He revealed that the attackers broke into the community and proceeded to to the clergyman’s home.
It was said that the terrorists carried out their operations for more than an hour without being confronted, firing randomly towards the ceiling where the pastor’s kid was hiding.
Residents in the neighborhood are confused because contact has not yet been made with the kidnappers, according to Mukaddas, who claimed that they have already reported the incident to the police.
In order to ensure that our loved ones are saved, he pleaded with the authorities and security services.
Assailants have reportedly attacked Hon. Jonathan Asake’s campaign vehicle in Kaduna State’s Gidan Waya, Jema’a local government area, on Friday. Asake is the Labour Party’s (LP) candidate for governor of Kaduna State.
Four youths were injured in the attack, including two males and two females, according to a statement issued by Mr. James Swam, the media aide to the LP governorship candidate.
The incident allegedly occurred when the campaign team was touring the local government while the campaign convoy was traveling through Gidan Waya during the Friday Juma’at prayers on its way to Godogodo and other towns.
He claimed that as soon as the first three vehicles in the convoy passed through the used tires that had been used to mark the path, thugs began hurling rocks, sticks, and other dangerous objects at the extensive convoy.
“It took the timely intervention of the security personnel attached to the candidate to forestall a crisis,” he stated.
Less than a week to the governorship and House of Assembly elections on Saturday, March 11, Fulani herdsmen have invaded six communities in the Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State, North Central Nigeria and killed no less than 50 persons. Although the police in Benue State said the casualty figure was not up to 50, it could not provide counter details. The affected communities in the four-day attack are Adam, Iyarinwa, Abamde Ityuluv, Waya Boagundu, Agura Ayaga and Azege areas in Turan Council Ward, Kwande LGA. The former chairman of the Council Tertsua Yarkbewan, who confirmed the casualty figures while addressing journalists, on Monday, said the death toll could be more.
Lamenting the constant invasion and killing of his people by herdsmen, Yarkbewan said, “My people are being massacred like goats. What we have been hearing is that there are Fulani attacks, especially in Turan in the Kwande axis. Even places where there were no attacks before are witnessing attacks.
“Now, every day you hear that five or four people were killed, you cannot have the exact number of those that have been killed because some corpses are still in the bush and yet to be recovered. But looking at the number of people being killed in the past few days, I think the casualty figures should be over 50.”
Reacting to the incident, the Police Command spokesperson, Catherine Anene, confirmed the attack but said the normalcy have returned to the affected communities. Anene, however, insisted that casualty figure wasn’t correct. “They have not given me the report but it is not up to 50; the initial report they gave me there was a change of leadership of the division. The new DPO just reported last Friday and when I asked him to give me a situation report he said the area is calm now,” she said.
…Demands that “the states of the Niger Delta adequately enforce their anti-open grazing legislation and safeguard people’s lives and property.”
Ijaw leaders have issued warnings against the invasion of Ijaw communities by armed individuals who are thought to be herders, under the aegis of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) and the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC).
They noted that “these intruders who wield lethal and dangerous weapons” have been alarmingly invading the towns and farms of Ijaw and other Niger Delta residents.
Consequently, they urged “the Niger Delta states to effectively enforce their anti-open grazing legislation and protect lives and property.
Additionally, they should offer people the assurance that they can go to their fields and earn a living without being afraid or uneasy, especially since lost lives cannot be replaced.
These statements can be found in a statement released on Wednesday by Professor Benjamin Okaba, National President of the INC.
“Our brothers and sisters have been brutally murdered by these herdsmen in their communities and farmlands throughout the states of Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers, and Ondo, among others.
He noted that, particularly in the last few years, “the horrific tales of the barbarous and despicable conduct of these agents of provocation have led reports.”
First Vice President Atamuno Atamuno, Secretary Ebipamowei Wodu, Treasurer Philip Agu, and Financial Secretary Kenneth Odiowei were among the INC national executives present.
On January 24, some alleged armed herdsmen were claimed to have brutally murdered a father and his kid at their farm in Toru-Angiama, in the Patani Local Government Area of Delta State. Mr. Okaba recalled this incident.
He stated, “A woman was murdered in her farm at Sabagriea community in Kolokuma/Opokuma LGA of Bayelsa State on January 25, 2023.
In February 2021, suspected herdsmen attacked a farmer and his son on their farm in the Otuoke community of the Ogbia LGA in Bayelsa.
The constant invasions and violent attacks are part of a nefarious plan by these herders and their employers to seize and dominate the Niger Delta and the Ijaw nation.
“We vehemently oppose in its totality all covert attempts by herders and their employers to seize control of the bushes of the Ijaw nation.
“We are steadfast in our resolve to thwart any efforts by strange forces to terrorize and drive Ijaw people from their ancient territories and history.
In order to advance peace and sustainable development, “we endorse all anti-open grazing laws legally approved by the Houses of Assembly of Niger Delta states and assented to by their Governors.”
The governor of the Plateau has refuted circulating allegations that herdsmen have taken control of several of the region’s settlements.
At a service to commemorate the 2023 Plateau Forgiveness Day on Sunday at St. Monica Catholic Church in Jos, the governor took advantage of the opportunity to address allegations being made that the State’s government had done nothing to stop herdsmen from occupying some villages and taking control of others.
He refuted the claim and asserted that there was no evidence of any local takeover on his desk.
According to him, the government passed and signed into law the Anti-Land Grabbing bill in 2020 as a preventative measure.
“I want the world to know that what we have been doing is bringing people back to their ancestral lands who have been displaced after fleeing their homes as a result of attacks. For instance, the contractor has been given the go-ahead to begin work on the site for the construction of a Police Mobile Barracks in Kakuruk, Gashish District, Barkin Local Government. This would give the residents of the area the security they need to return to their lands.
“Another village, Jong Community in the Ropp District of Barkin Ladi returned to their abode last two months ago. Similarly, the Shonong Community in Bachit District of Riyom Local Government has also been returned to their homes”.
Governor Lalong said anyone who has such a complaint should write to the Government or go to court to protest such an infraction if it happens to promise that he will not spare anyone who tries to lay claim on any inch of Plateau State that does not belong to him.
Lalong has come under fire in the past by Plateau youths for how he has handled insecurity in the state
The Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU) has voiced alarm over what it has called “a well-packaged bouquet of deadly charges” made against Governor Samuel Ortom by an organization led by the former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.
According to SOKAPU, it condemns the killing of innocent individuals or any resident of Nigeria, regardless of color, tribe, creed, or area.
“Southern Kaduna has had more cruelty than it can manage, especially in the last eight years,” said Mr. Luka Binniyat, spokesman for SOKAPU, in a statement. “We know what mass murder of defenseless law-abiding civilians entails.”
According to the statement, the Air Force administration has admitted responsibility for the strikes and defended its line of action, arguing that if the bombing victims were innocent herders, justice must be served and full compensation must be given to their families.
It said, “On January 30, 2023, the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria wrote and signed a strongly worded letter to President Muhammadu Buhari that was filled with accusations and threats against Gov. Ortom. The letter made its way into the press. It is absurd and regrettable that the previous Emir of Kano and leading Fulani elites would go so far as to try to implicate Ortom in the event.
According to the statement, the major offense committed by Governor Ortom is the Open Grazing and Livestock Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law, which is enforced by the Benue State Livestock Guards. The statement claimed that since the law’s passage in 2017, Gov. Ortom has not only been the target of a barrage of verbal attacks from enraged Fulani leaders and groups, but has also survived multiple attempts on his life.
SOKAPU observed that if a state government enacts a law that every resident of the state is bound by, no ethnic group has the exclusive right to disrespect such a law no matter how privileged and protected it may be and that the most civilized course of action is to follow the democratic process of reviewing the law or repealing it.
“Therefore, we anticipate that Sanusi and his tribe chiefs will urge their followers to uphold Benue State law while on state territory and to pursue legal means of amending or repealing any law they believe to be against their people’s best interests”.
“What SOKAPU finds curious and very surprising is that Sanusi who has portrayed himself as a nationalist of some kind has reduced himself to a narrow champion of his tribesmen. We say this because Sanusi has made Kaduna his second home since his dethronement as the Emir of Kano in March 2020 but has never made a comment on the mass killings of the people of Southern Kaduna and law-abiding Fulani in Kaduna State,” the forum noted.
The statement continued, “In June 2022, the forum reported with proof of how killer herdsmen on over 150 motorbikes attacked some communities in Adara Chiefdom in Kajuru LGA in Southern Kaduna, while a low-flying Air Force gun-mounted plane assisted the invaders.” It added that 32 innocent farmers were killed in the attack and a further ten were abducted.
This is just one of many attacks for which we have alleged complicity on the part of a rebellious military unit. Sanusi has been attempting to portray himself as a statesman, thus we would have anticipated that he would add his substantial voice to denouncing such criminality and demanding justice, even if not with the same zeal and fervor he is applying to the Akwanaja bombing, the statement said.
” Sanusi wields a lot of influence on the Governor of Kaduna state, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai. However, el-Rufai has persisted in demonstrating a lack of ability or will to safeguard the residents of Kaduna State, particularly from the bloodshed caused by armed herders who are also known as “bandits.” When Kaduna, his second home, is gushing with the blood of innocent victims as a result of savage herdsmen assaults, Sanusi’s decision to focus on Ortom in distant Benue State (away from the scene of the atrocities in Nasarawa State) certainly reeks of a troubling agenda against Ortom.
It was highlighted that Southern Kaduna, a formidable region of the Middle Belt, wanted to declare that if Ortom suffered harm, they knew who should be held accountable.
“We show our support for Ortom and the residents of Benue State. We also want a thorough investigation of the bombing in Akwanaja. We further want that the same policy be applied to similar bombs that have occurred in Southern Kaduna, according to the forum.
Following a recent bombardment of individuals thought to be herders on the border of Benue and Nasarawa States, it has been claimed that suspected Fulani herdsmen have exacted revenge on Tiv communities in Nasarawa State.
This follows comments by the deposed Emir Sanusi concerning the killings in which he had earlier alleged that the Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom was responsible for the alleged airstrike in Rukubi, a village on the border between Nasarawa and Benue States which left 56 persons dead with others injured.
Emir Sanusi said “All the air strikes that took place in Nasarawa were masterminded from Makurdi. We must hold him responsible since we know his position against Fulani. It’s only an investigation that will avail him of the allegations. Why won’t t there be an investigation to reveal who masterminded the bombardment? And who gives orders to the Air force to always launch these airstrikes?
However, the Tiv community of Nasarawa State claimed yesterday that suspected armed herdsmen were continuing to attack and murder innocent Tiv people in the southern portion of the state as retaliation for the recent bombing.
Mr Peter Ahemba, president of the Tiv Development Association (TIDA) in Nasarawa State, raised the alarm yesterday in a press conference in Lafia. As a result, he urged the federal and state governments to take immediate action to put an end to the ongoing attacks and killings.
He further said that heavily armed herdsmen had singled out and attacked the Tiv people, highlighting the fact that numerous innocent Tiv farmers had already been killed and driven from their homes in the state’s Doma, Keana, and Obi Local Government Areas.
Ahemba emphasized that the intelligence report available to the TIDA leadership showed that the heavily armed herders were preparing to launch more lethal attacks on Tiv settlements throughout the state’s southern zone, as well as portions of the Kokona and Nasarawa Local Government Areas, in order to ensure the complete annihilation of the Tiv nation in the state.
“Thousands of our people have been displaced from across Doma, Keana, and Obi LGAs of the state and armed herders have massacred scores of our people in the previous few days.”
“Chabo village has been devastated to nothing but ashes. As the entire Tiv community in Doma has been forced to flee their homes and numerous others are being slain in isolated communities, a fatal attack was launched on Ajo village in Keana LGA, according to the TIDA President.
The Tiv people of the state were unaware of the recent airstrike that was being used as justification for the widespread killings of the Tiv farmers and destruction of their property, he said, describing the attacks on them as barbaric.
“We request assistance from the federal and state governments, who should provide sufficient security personnel to our communities in the impacted LGAs. All escape routes are still blocked by the herders, who are currently killing our people like animals, according to Ahemba.
Samuel Ortom, the governor of Benue State, has referred to accusations linking his administration to the deaths caused by an airstrike on a community in Nasarawa State as malicious.
The governor claimed that neither he nor his administration were involved in the terrible event.
He insisted that he did not give anyone the command to commit the deed and that he lacked the authority to direct the air raid operation which resulted in the killings
The governor said it was sheer mischief for someone to try and tie him into something he had no knowledge of and questioned why he would be associated with the occurrence.
The Benue state Governor has responded to the deposed Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi who in a recent video called on Ortom to learn from his fellow governors on how to manage diversity in his state – citing the Governor of Plateau State as his model.
Ortom issued a response through his spokesman, Nathaniel Ikyur in a press statement where he urged Sanusi to restrain himself from meddling in the affairs of Benue State. The Benue Governor also asked the former emir to face the court litigation surrounding his dethronement.
According to the statement, the video was aimed at profiling Governor Ortom before the Fulani race, however, Ortom further stated that he does not intend to join issues with the deposed emir due to the sacredness with which he holds human lives. He maintained that the anti-open grazing law which the deposed emir referenced earlier was validly passed by the Benue State House of Assembly with appropriate penalties for violators.
Ortom also stated that at the appropriate time, he would respond and say his side of the story and expose the evil that had been orchestrated by people perceived to be educated and who are supposed to be good leaders. He further said he found it strange that Sanusi would advise him to govern Benue like Plateau – when he was “elected by the people of Benue state and not any man in Kano”.
The governor pointed out that the law prohibiting open grazing in Benue did not conflict with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and as such, noone could stop the Benue state government from enforcing the rights and practice of the law.
