…As Tor Tiv decries ‘genocidal invasion’
President Bola Tinubu has directed Nigeria’s security chiefs to arrest those responsible for the recent massacre in Yelewata, Guma local government area of Benue State, as outrage grows over the escalating violence blamed on armed herders.
The President, during a high-level stakeholder meeting in Makurdi yesterday, also expressed frustration at the failure of law enforcement to act swiftly following the attack, which claimed over 100 lives.
Tinubu, visibly angered, rebuked the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, for not apprehending the suspects nearly a week after the deadly assault. “We need to get our ears to the ground. Let’s get those criminals. Let’s get them out,” he told the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa,
Earlier in the day, Tinubu visited survivors of the Yelewata attack at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital, where he was received by the State Governor, Hyacinth Alia and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume.
The President later convened a stakeholder dialogue at the new Banquet Hall of the Benue Government House. Present were top government officials, including the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu; governors from the North-Central region; service chiefs; and members of the National Assembly. The visit came as the state declared a public holiday in Tinubu’s honour.
However, it was the Tor Tiv V, Prof. James Ayatse, who gave voice to the deep frustration among Benue’s traditional leaders. In a bold address, Ayatse dismissed narratives framing the violence as herder-farmer clashes, calling it a “calculated, well-planned, full-scale genocidal invasion and land-grabbing campaign” by armed herders and bandits.
“Your Excellency, it is not communal clashes. It is not reprisal attacks. It is war”, Ayatse told Tinubu. He said persistent mischaracterisation of the violence had led to misguided solutions like “tolerance” and “peace negotiation”, which he argued fail to address the scale and motive of the attacks.
The traditional ruler also raised alarm over political exploitation of the crisis, alleging that some politicians preferred a worsening security situation as a pretext for declaring a state of emergency in Benue. “Any politician who prays for more people to die for such a project is against the wishes of the people of Benue State”, he said.
Ayatse appealed to President Tinubu to act decisively, reminding him of Benue’s historical sacrifices for Nigeria’s unity. “We paid the supreme price during the Civil War. Why are we being treated like this?” he asked.
He warned that insecurity was crippling agriculture in the state, leading to hunger and worsening food insecurity. “Our farmers have been chased from their lands. All we ask is: give us peace so we can return to our farms,” he said.
In his response, Tinubu acknowledged the gravity of the situation and called for unity among leaders in the region, urging them to form a leadership committee to devise a peace strategy in Abuja. “I am ready to invest in that peace”, he pledged.
The President also issued a veiled warning to Governor Alia, saying: “Your political enemies don’t want you to succeed… Are you just realising that?” He stressed that enduring peace would require collaboration beyond politics: “We cannot do without one another”.
As pressure mounts on security forces to act, citizens and leaders in Benue continue to demand justice and an end to what many are now calling a humanitarian crisis driven by impunity, politics, and neglect.
