- Gov Alia condemns attack as “cowardly act of terror”
- As Police deploy combined security team to affected areas
No fewer than 17 persons, including a Mobile Police officer, were killed on Tuesday following an attack by suspected armed herdsmen on Abande settlement in Mbaikyor Ward, Turan District of Kwande Local Government Area of Benue State.
Reports said the attack occurred at the Abande market while traders and buyers were conducting business, with eyewitnesses claiming the assailants stormed the market, shooting sporadically at people, looted some shops and thereafter set parts of the market ablaze.
Recounting the unfortunate incident, a community leader and former Supervisory Councillor in Kwande LGA, Lawrence Akerigba, said the invaders carted away millions of Naira from traders before torching the market, adding, “Yesterday, (Tuesday) was Abande market day. People were buying and selling when the herders attacked. They looted shops, took away large sums of money and later set the market on fire.”
He further stated thus: “As of 11:55pm, some of the victims’ bodies were conveyed to Jato-Aka by personnel of the Mobile Police Force stationed in the area. A Mobile Police officer, said to be the unit commander on duty at the time, was also killed.”
Akerigba, who disclosed that the attack has forced residents to flee their homes following the worsening security situation in Turan, said, “Since the beginning of this year, our people have been attacked almost daily. More than 76 people, including security officers, have been killed.”
While questioning the enforcement of the Benue Open Grazing Prohibition Law, the Community Leader lamented the absence of visible government presence in the border communities, blamed the development for the festering insecurity in the affected areas.
He said it is regrettable that both the Federal and Benue State governments have been unable address the deep-seated, long-lasting feeling of uncertainty, inadequacy, and instability that have grown worse over the years.
According to him, the authorities cannot continue to pay lip service to issues around a comprehensive, multi-faceted, and community-driven approach that combines security measures with social and economic interventions, towards enhancing community policing, fostering trust between residents and security agencies, while also addressing root causes such as poverty and youth unemployment.
Police, Gov Alia React, Condemn Attack
Confirming the attack, the Benue State Police Command, which gave a lower casualty figure, said one Mobile Police officer and four community members were killed by the invaders.
A statement signed by its spokesperson, DSP Udeme Edet, said, “During the ensuing confrontation while police operatives were responding to a distress call, one Assistant Superintendent of Police attached to 13 Police Mobile Force, Makurdi, was fatally injured.”
The statement disclosed that a combined security team has already been deployed to restore order in the affected community, with the Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, also ordering the deployment of additional Mobile Force personnel and Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC) to the area.
On his part, Governor Hyacinth Alia, who condemned the attack, described it as a “cowardly act of terror”, adding: “My heart goes out to the peaceful people of Abande. This cowardly act of terror, which claimed innocent lives, including a gallant police officer, is an assault on our shared humanity.
“I have directed relevant security agencies to intensify operations, go after the perpetrators with all the energies at their disposal, and restore safety to our communities.”
PDP Raises Alarm Over Attack
Meanwhile, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Benue State has described the attack as “gruesome and barbaric,” while alleging government failure to protect lives and property across the north central state.
The Party, which accused armed herdsmen of carrying out the attack, said, “Credible reports indicate that no fewer than 17 persons were brutally killed,” and urged security agencies to decisively apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators.
