Buhari was reacting to the recent Benue killings. Armed herdsmen attacked Umogidi community, Entekpa-Adoka in Otukpo council area where not less than 51 persons were reportedly killed on Wednesday night.
By Emma Ogbuehi
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Saturday, condemned the series of attacks and killings in some Benue communities, tasking security agencies to go after and bring perpetrators to face the law.
Buhari was reacting to the recent violent attack by armed herdsmen on Umogidi community, Entekpa-Adoka in Otukpo council area where not less than 51 persons were reportedly killed on Wednesday night.
Wednesday’s attack came less than 24 hours after a similar attack left three persons dead.
In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, which was made available to TheNiche, Buhari urged that all efforts be made to end the “extreme violence.”
He condemned the use of terrorism as a tool in inter communal conflicts, urging that the attackers be found and dealt with swiftly under the law.
He conveyed his grief and sympathy to the families of those who lost their lives due to the attack and directed the secret services, police and military commanders to enhance surveillance on every front and to immediately review the security management in the affected areas.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those murdered. The entire nation stands united in the fight against the forces of terror and evil,” the President said.
On Saturday, the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, expressed concerns over the alleged influx of killer herdsmen into the state after Reverend Fr. Hyacinth Alia was declared winner of the March 18 gubernatorial poll.
This was contained in a statement released by his Chief Press Secretary Nathaniel Ikyur, worrying that this might affect the security situation of the state if it was not addressed by the Governor-elect.
In an article titled “Ortom did not shut out the Fulani from Benue”, Ikyur expressed concerns that Alia’s relationship with the Minister of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, George Akume, might jeopardise state security.
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Meanwhile, the Governor-elect has condemned the brutal killings in Umogidi community of Entekpa-Adoka district in Otukpo Local Government Area of the state.
In a statement by his Deputy Director Media, Mr. Donald Kumun, Fr. Alia sympathised with the families of the deceased and condoled with them, calling on the Umogidi community and the Benue people as a whole to remain calm and law-abiding amidst their sorrows and pains.
He called on the security agencies to conduct surveillance to identify the perpetrators behind the killings and nip it in the bud for peace to be restored in the communities.
Fr. Alia assured the Umogidi community and others affected by the attacks of his resilience to work with relevant security agencies and communities in the state to stop the senseless killings when he is sworn-in as the next governor of the state on May 29, 2023.
He, therefore, expressed sadness over the killings and called on the government at all levels to be more proactive to quell the insecurity challenges in the state and also stay close to the bereaved families in these trying times, saying that his fraternal prayers are with the souls of the deceased to rest in perfect peace, and peace should take prominence in the communities, in the interest of all and sundry.