• FG: Crisis is receiving the highest attention
• Presidency: Buhari not a killer
• Saraki orders Senate panel to expedite action on killings
• 56 Taraba victims get mass burial, families narrate their ordeal
• Benue to bury its dead today, IG apologises
By Omololu Ogunmade, Damilola Oyedele in Abuja, Gboyega Akinsanmi in Lagos, Wole Ayodele in Jalingo and George Okoh in Makurdi
Alarmed by the mounting death toll arising from the gruesome attacks allegedly
perpetuated by armed herdsmen on communities in Benue and Taraba
States, among other neighbouring states, Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole
Soyinka yesterday cried out that the herdsmen “have declared war against
the nation”, citing their serial attacks on innocent citizens.
Soyinka, a renowned playwright and poet, also said the federal government was “culpable, definitely guilty of looking the other
way while the herdsmen attacked communities without let or hindrance”,
noting that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari “must
indeed be held complicit”.
He
expressed disappointment in the manner the administration has treated
the nefarious activities of the herdsmen across the country in a
statement he issued yesterday, stressing that this present national
outrage was “over impunity”.
In
a four-page statement titled: “Impunity Rides Again”, Soyinka said the
Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) did not come anywhere close to the
homicidal propensity and attempt at dominance before it was declared a
terrorist organisation.
While
acknowledging that some progress had been made by the Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh in the last two and a
half years in improved farm produce, the Nobel laureate in outright
terms rejected the minister’s explanation that the federal government
had neglected livestock farmers over the years.
He
said citing government neglect as the rationale would make the herdsmen
attacks sound like the full story, but applauded the plan by Ogbeh’s
ministry “to empower and organise herdsmen and cow farming”.
“I
am in a position to know that much thought – and practical steps – have
gone into long-term plans for bringing about the creation of ‘ranches’,
‘colonies’ – whatever the name – including the special cultivation of
fodder for animal feed and so on and on.
“However,
the present national outrage is over impunity. It rejects the right of
any set of people, for whatever reason, to take arms against their
fellow men and women, to acknowledge their exploits in boastful and
justifying accents and, in effect, promise more of the same as long as
their terms and demands are not met.
“In
plain language, they have declared war against the nation, and their
weapon is undiluted terror. Why have they been permitted to become a
menace to the rest of us? That is the issue!” he charged.
Recalling
that he called upon the federal government a week ago to stop passing
the buck over the petrol shortages, Soyinka said he never intended that a
reverse policy would lead to “exonerating – or appearing to exonerate –
mass killers, rapists and economic saboteurs – saboteurs, since their
conduct subverts the efforts of others to economically secure their own
existence, drives other producers off their land in fear and terror”.
“This
promises the same plague of starvation that afflicts zones of conflict
all over this (African) continent where liberally sown landmines prevent
farmers from venturing near their prime source, the farm, often their
only source of livelihood, and has created a whole population of
amputees.
“At
least, those victims in Angola, Mozambique and other former war
theatres, mostly lived to tell the tale. These herdsmen, arrogant and
unconscionable, have adopted a scorched-earth policy, so that those
other producers – the cassava, cocoa, sorghum, rice, etc, farmers are
brutally expelled from farm and dwelling,” he said.
He
also cited the hideous massacre perpetrated by the herdsmen early in
2016, saying this same “Murder Incorporated” depicted a numerical climax
“to what had been a series across a number of Middle Belt and
neighbouring states, with Benue taking the brunt of the butchery”.
He
lamented that a peace meeting was called at the time, attended by the
state government and security agencies of the nation, including the
Inspector General of Police, but the herdsmen attended – according to
reports – with AK47s and other weapons of mass intimidation visible
under their garments.
He
equally recalled that the federal government neither disarmed nor
turned back the herdsmen that attended the peace meeting with arms and
weapons.
“They
freely admitted the killings but justified them by claims that they had
lost their cattle to the host community. It is important to emphasize
that none of their spokesmen referred to any government neglect, such as
refusal to pay subsidy for their cows or failure to accord them the
same facilities that had been extended to cassava or millet farmers.
“Such
are the monstrous beginnings of the culture of impunity. We are
reaping, yet again, the consequences of such tolerance of the
intolerable.
“Yes,
there indeed the government is culpable, definitely guilty of ‘looking
the other way’. Indeed, it must be held complicit,” Soyinka maintained.
Continuing, he asked: “This question is now current, and justified: just
when is terror? I am not aware that IPOB came anywhere close to this
homicidal propensity and will to dominance before it was declared a
terrorist organisation. The international community rightly refused to
go along with such an absurdity”
For the avoidance of doubt, Soyinka observed that the IPOB leadership is its own worst enemy.
“It
repels public empathy; indeed, I suspect that it deliberately
cultivates an obnoxious image, especially among its internet mouthers
who make rational discourse impossible,” he said of the proscribed
group.
However,
the Nobel laureate said the conduct of that movement, even at its most
extreme, “could by no means be reckoned as terrorism”.
“By
contrast, how do we categorise Myetti? How do we assess a mental state
that cannot distinguish between a stolen cow – which is always
recoverable – and human life, which is not.
“Villages
have been depopulated far wider than those outside their operational
zones can conceive. They swoop on sleeping settlements, kill and strut.
They glory in their seeming supremacy.
“Cocoa farmers do not kill when there is a cocoa blight. Rice farmers, cassava and tomato farmers do not burn.
“The
herdsmen cynically dredge up decades-old affronts – they did at the
2016 Benue ‘peace meeting’ to justify the killings of innocents in the
present – These crimes are treated like the norm.
“Once
again, the nation is being massaged by specious rationalisations while
the rampage intensifies and the spread spirals out of control.
“When we open the dailies tomorrow morning,
there is certain to have been a new body count, to be followed by the
arrogant justification of the Myetti Allah. The warnings pile up, the
distress signals have turned into a prolonged howl of despair and rage.
“The
answer is not to be found in pietistic appeals to victims to avoid
‘hate language’ and divisive attributions. The sustained, killing
monologue of the herdsmen is what is at issue. It must be curbed,
decisively and without further evasiveness,” he said.
Using
the mismanagement of the Boko Haram menace under former President
Goodluck Jonathan as a reminder, Soyinka stated that the former
president only saw “ghosts” when Boko Haram was already excising swathes
of territory from the nation space and abducting school pupils.
“The ghosts of Jonathan seem poised to haunt the tenure of Muhammadu Buhari,” he warned.
However,
in reaction to the outrage expressed over the killings, presidential
spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, yesterday frowned at those accusing the
president of condoning the massacres occasioned by farmers-herdsmen
conflicts across the country.
Adesina,
who is the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, in a
video message he posted on his personal Facebook account, dismissed the
insinuations that Buhari was condoning the killing because he is a
Fulani man.
According to him, such killings by herdsmen predated the Buhari administration.
He
said: “Something that is disturbing that I have heard about it is
linking those developments to the fact that a Fulani man is president
and so, he is brooking such kind of evil acts.
“I think that is very unkind. And I will try to back my position with statistics.
“In
2013, particularly, there were nine cases of herdsmen invading
communities in Benue State alone and more than 190 people were killed.”
The
presidential aide, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), also
noted that in 2014, there were about 16 of such tragic developments,
with more than 231 people killed.
He
further explained that there was a change of government in May 2015,
but between January and May 2015, there were six attacks which left
about 335 people dead.
“Now,
the question is, during that period, did we have a Fulani president?
This is showing us that the issue of herdsmen attacking settlements,
attacking farmers, attacking communities, is pure criminality and it is
something that government must deal with.
“It
is the duty of government to preserve the lives of the citizenry. It is
the responsibility of government to maintain law and order and that
this government is determined to do.
“Therefore, let nobody say that all this is happening because we have a Fulani president.
“We
have had many Fulani presidents in the past and this issue of herders
and local communities at loggerheads has predated this government,’’ he
added.
Adesina
appealed to all citizens to continue to support and co-operate with the
Buhari administration as the government was poised to find lasting
solutions to the conflicts.
According to him, the government is determined to get to the bottom of it and it will get done.
‘Crisis Receiving Attention’
Irrespective
of the assurance provided by the president’s spokesman, the Federal
Executive Council (FEC) yesterday kept mum on the devastating killings
of innocent people in Benue, Taraba and neighbouring states.
Whereas
the council was expected to deliberate extensively on the matter and
brief journalists on its decision, there was no mention of it at
yesterday’s briefing coordinated by the Minister of Information and
Culture, Mr. Lai Mohammed.
It
was not until State House correspondents started to ask questions on
why the federal government had found it difficult to deploy troops to
quell the raging crisis in Benue as it did during the threats posed by
IPOB in the South-east in September, that Mohammed attempted to address
the issue.
He said the crisis in the Middle Belt of the country was receiving the highest attention in the government.
According
to him, deployment of troops would be predicated on the aftermath of
the current examination being conducted on the matter.
“What
I can assure you is that the government is very, very concerned about
the herdsmen and farmers’ clashes and it is receiving attention at the
highest level and as to if troops will be sent, it will be a decision
after thorough deliberation on the matter,” he said.
Also
asked to explain the difference between the cattle colonies being
proposed by the federal government in pursuit of the solution to the
farmers-herdsmen clashes in Benue State, Mohammed said he was not an
expert on agriculture but believed that colonies are bigger than
ranches.
“I’m not an agricultural expert. I know that a colony is much bigger in nature than the ranch,” he said.
But
throwing more light on the proposal, the Minister of State for
Aviation, Mr. Hadi Sirika, explained that cattle colonies were more or
less the creation of the cattle routes which he said were first created
in the country during the colonial era in 1914.
However,
he said the establishment of cattle colonies would not commence without
consulting farmers and will be done in accordance with the relevant
laws of the land.
According
to him, cattle routes as they existed then had to do with the routes
the cattle passed through, where they grazed, where they were fed and
where they drank water.
“I
think perhaps, not speaking as an agriculture expert, but in the
hinterland, where I grew up, there used to be cattle routes. They called
them colonies in the local language.
“They
were established from 1914 as cattle routes, where they grazed, where
they followed, where they fed and where they drank water.
“When
that was available, there was no farmers-herdsmen clash, because the
routes were specifically identified and marked and then paid for
overtime.
“But
I think due to urbanisation, due to the increase in population, the
lands were either taken over or used for farms. But the question as to
the difference between colonies and cattle ranches, it is about the same
thing. I don’t think government will do anything without recourse to
farmland owners and the laws of the land,” he explained.
Senate to Expedite Action
Irrespective
of the seeming reluctance by the federal government to treat the
murderous attacks perpetuated by the herdsmen as acts of terrorism, the
President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, in response to the recent
killings in Benue and Rivers States, directed members of the Senate
Ad-hoc Committee on Security to immediately resume sitting and work
through the weekend to ensure that it has an interim report ready for
the consideration of members by next week.
In
statement issued yesterday by his spokesman, Mr. Yusuph Olaniyonu,
Saraki, in reaction to the situation in Benue, especially reinforced his
belief that the killings were clear indications that the security
architecture in the country has inherent faults and needs to be
refurbished.
“I
believe the sad situation in Benue State shows some fundamental faults
in our security system. There is a clear failure of intelligence
gathering, analysis and response time.
“Our security agencies must be totally overhauled in terms of equipment, specialisation, funding, training and staffing.
“This
is the reason why in November, the Senate set up a special committee
led by Senate Majority Leader, Ahmed Lawan, to work with the security
agencies and review the entire system with a view to identifying what is
required in terms of laws, processes, procedures, funding and other
necessities for us to have a solid security system which can be
pro-active in identifying potential threats, responding to them on time
and preventing any breach.
“We
are quite aware of the fact that security is the first and prime
responsibility of any government. That is why since early last week, I
have directed the Lawan committee to take into consideration the sad
developments in Benue and Rivers in their deliberations.
“Now, we cannot wait for the time they planned to conclude their recommendations. They must fast track their schedule.
“They must sit through the weekend and get an interim report ready for the Senate when we resume plenary on Tuesday. We must immediately support the executive in solving this problem.
“We
cannot afford the spilling of blood and we are already moving into the
election year with the potential for the aggravation or escalation of
these problems.
“We must decisively resolve the problem of needless blood letting,” Saraki stated.
56 Victims Buried in Taraba
Even
as Saraki ordered the Senate committee to expedite action on its
report, 56 persons killed in fresh attacks on five communities in Lau
Local Government Area of Taraba State by Fulani militia were yesterday
given a mass burial by the communities.
However,
the corpses of no fewer than 35 people who were believed to have been
killed during the attacks were yet to be recovered for burial.
Donadda, Lavoro, Katibu, Didango and Maku communities were attacked on Monday through Tuesday by the Fulani militia who set the entire communities ablaze after killing anyone in sight.
There
was an outpouring of grief as relatives of the victims and others who
witnessed the burial wept uncontrollably and rained curses on the
federal government for failing to secure the lives of the citizenry
across the country.
They
debunked insinuations that the attacks were a fall out of the crisis
between Bachama farmers and the militia, insisting that they were
attacked without provocation.
Narrating
her ordeal, a mother of four who lost her husband to the attack, Mrs.
Paulina Habila, said that her husband was slaughtered like a goat.
“My
husband was slaughtered like a goat in my presence by the Fulani
people. They razed our community and in my village alone 35 persons were
killed. Are the Fulani herdsmen fighting a war with Christian
communities in Taraba State? Why are they killing us for no reason?” she
asked.
Another
victim who spoke to newsmen, Pastor Titus Makovini, said the attackers
entered the community church and slaughtered some worshipers, as well as
some of those who ran into the church for refuge while others fled into
the bush.
He
revealed that for the two days that the attack lasted, there was no
security reinforcement in the various communities which are presently
deserted as most people have moved into the internally displaced persons
(IDP) camp in Jalingo, the state capital.
At
the IDP camp, the displaced persons took turns to narrate their
ordeals, and all of them were unanimous that they had been rendered
homeless and could not go back to their homes for fear of further
attacks.
“We
have lost our ancestral homes as the entire communities have been
razed. Our communities have become unsafe for habitation since Fulani
herdsmen still lurk around and they might attack us again.
“Go
to our villages now. All what we have laboured for has gone. We don’t
know where to start and we keep wondering if the federal government is
allowing the herdsmen to kill us unchallenged,” they said.
But
even as they lamented their fate, the Taraba State Police Command
appealed to the residents of the affected communities to return to their
homes, assuring them of adequate security.
The
Police Public Relations Officer, David Misal who gave the assurance on
behalf of the Police Commissioner, Mr. Dave Akinremi, said additional
security had already been redeployed in the troubled communities to
safeguard them from further attacks, but he refrained from giving the
number of casualties from the attacks.
He,
however, appealed to the public to furnish the command with useful
information that would assist it and lead to the arrest of the
perpetrators of the attacks in the state.
Benue to Bury Its Dead Today
Just
as the Taraba people buried their dead yesterday, the Benue State
Government said yesterday that it would bury 73 victims of the new year
day attacks by suspected herdsmen today.
The
victims were killed by the herdsmen who invaded five villages in Guma
and Logo Local Government Areas on new year day. Many others were
injured while over 50,000 people were displaced.
The
Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, announced government’s decision to
hold a mass burial for the deceased at a stakeholders’ meeting in
Makurdi, the state capital.
The meeting focused on insecurity in the state and the way forward.
Ortom,
who called for prayers, said that the deceased would be remembered for
sacrificing their lives to protect Benue farmlands.
He appealed for calm during the burial and cautioned Benue residents against reprisals, reported NAN.
Ortom
vowed to ensure that the attackers are apprehended and promised
government’s support to the security agencies to actualise the arrests.
However,
during the stakeholders’ meeting, the Inspector General of Police, Mr.
Ibrahim Idris, came under a barrage of criticism as he resumed duty in
Makurdi yesterday, following directive by the president on Monday ordering him to relocate to the state to stop the killings.
Idris
stated that his presence in the state was to restore peace in the areas
affected by the crisis and assured his audience that the “hoodlums and
miscreants” responsible for the killings will be arrested and
prosecuted.
He
said the police would carry out detailed investigations into the cause
of the attacks, adding that another stakeholders’ meeting will be
conveyed involving Benue and Nasarawa State, which was accused of
harbouring the herdsmen.
Idris also apologised to the people of Benue for referring to the recent herdsmen attacks on the state as communal clashes.
“There
was a misrepresentation I made at a press conference in Abuja. But all I
was trying to do was to convey a message that all Nigerians should be
able to live together in peace.
“I
apologise for the misconception in the statement that I made at a press
conference in Abuja. I was only trying to convey a message that
Nigerians should live together in peace. As policemen, we try to avoid
divisive statements,” he said.
The IG was however unsettled when speaker after speaker accused him of complicity in the crisis.
Some
of the speakers including Chief Edward Ujege, representing the three
socio-cultural groups in the state, Mr. Terrence Kwaghnongu,
representing the youths, and Mrs. Rebecca Apedzan, representing women,
insisted that only the military and not the police can curtail the
herdsmen attacks in Benue.
Also,
in their remarks, Prof. Daniel Saror, Justice Utsaha and Chief John
Anteyin, representing the three senatorial zones of the state, all
rejected the federal government’s proposed cattle colonies, insisting
that ranching remained the only solution to the herdsmen-farmers’
clashes in line with global best practices.
Anteyin,
while speaking, reminded the IG: “When you were a Commissioner of
Police in Nasarawa State, there were a lot of violent attacks on Agatu
by Fulani herdsmen who camped in Loko Local Government of Area of the
state.
“The
state assembly member representing Agatu constituency, Hon. Audu Sule,
who is here with us today, was sent to you for help and you said there
was a limit to how much you can intervene, except when you receive
orders from the headquarters, but now that you are in charge of the
headquarters yourself, what have you done?”
Kwaghnongu also described Idris’ presence in Benue as an insult to the sensibilities of people in the state.
“Your DIG Operations told us on television that the terrain is complex, so are you now coming to clear the terrain?
“We
have this crisis because you refused to adhere to the global terrorism
index, which rates these herdsmen as the fourth deadliest terror group
in the world.
“We need the military presence here in Benue State because what is happening is tantamount to genocide.
“The
president was in Zamfara State when the herdsmen attacked the state, he
constituted a military taskforce to protect the North-west.
“He
said the herdsmen must be declared terrorists and the leadership of
Miyetti Allah must be arrested,” Kwaghnongu reminded the IG.
Also
speaking, Josephine Habba, who represented the civil society groups in
the state, Rev. Fr. Solomon Mfa, representing the clergy, and Chief
Benson Ogairo, a security expert, while alleging that a lot of killings
of Tiv people was going on unreported in Nasarawa State, they maintained
that if the
president was not prepared to personally come and commiserate with the
people of Benue at this critical time, he should not bother to come for
their votes in 2019.
On
their part, the paramount ruler of the Tiv nation, Tor Tiv James Ayatse
and the speaker of the Benue Assembly, Hon. Terkimbi Ikyange, noted
that what was going on in the state was not about the Anti-open Grazing
Act enacted in the state, but an ethnic cleansing agenda.
The
Tor Tiv, who said that the heartless destruction of lives and property
in the state must stop, further appealed to the IG to ensure that any
attempt to wipe out the Benue people is immediately aborted.
Death Toll Rises to 80
Meanwhile,
at least 80 person may have been killed in Benue State since the new
year day attacks that forced tens of thousands from their homes, an
official of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) has said.
The
violence between herders and farmers intensified over the New Year,
fuelled by the new law banning the nomadic cattle rustlers from moving
through the state.
“Eighty
is the number we can say for now, the attacks have not stopped,” the
SEMA executive secretary Emmanuel Shior told AFP by telephone.
Shior
said the killings had displaced thousands of people in the local
councils of Guma and Logo who are now seeking shelter in four camps.
“The
number (of internally displaced people) is 80,000 now because the
killings have continued, some of the people in other states are running
to Benue,” Shior said in Makurdi.
“We suspect these people are reacting against the open grazing prohibition put in place by the governor of Benue State.”
The
prohibition was meant to encourage the herdsmen, who belong to the
Fulani ethnic group, to shift from nomadic grazing to ranching cattle,
which would theoretically prevent bloody disputes over land with
farmers.
But
when the new law was introduced last year, it was instantly condemned
by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN),
the umbrella body of Fulani herders in Nigeria, which said it threatened
their way of life.
“It
is very wrong for a governor to ban Fulani from feeding their cows.
These cows are their livelihoods,” said Haruna Usman, the Kaduna State
chairman of MACBAN.
“That is where the government made a big mistake,” Usman said, calling for negotiations.
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