By Mike Odeh James and Olikita Ekani
Gwer-West Local Government Area (LGA) Chairman of benue State, Henry Agba, have lambasted troops of the Nigerian military for doing nothing after relentless attacks by ethnic militias killed four, leaving a trail of bloodshed and despair.
Agba told TruthNigeria: “The attack took place on Thursday, September, 5 2024 at about 4:30 pm local time (15:30 GMT) along Naka-Agagbe road. As it was happening, I called on the military, but their Commander told me that they were not given order to kill any terrorist. It appears the military has been compromised.
“We no longer have confidence in the military. Killings has become an everyday affair in Gwer-West (Local Governance Area), the military are not doing anything, and they don’t allow the youths to carry arms to defend our people. Two persons were killed on Thursday, one yesterday and one today again and no action from the military.
“We are begging the government to replace the military with local Police. Most of our people now believe that the military have been compromised and are working with the terrorists.”
The latest victims include Shundan Vershima, brutally murdered on Sunday, September 8, 2024, while farming in Naka town, and Sarwuan Ikyo, ambushed and killed on Monday, September 9, 2024, while returning from a burial ceremony.
Kenneth Agbu, Shundan’s elder brother, recounted the horrific events, his voice trembling with grief: “My brother went to a farm within Naka town on Sunday at about 12 pm (11 hr GMT) with one of our brothers, Junior Vershima Agbu, to get some potatoes for family consumption.
“While they were about to return home, Fulani terrorists appeared suddenly and started shooting at them. Shundan Vershima died at the spot while Junior escaped with bullet wounds.”
The community was still reeling from another bloodbath that occurred on Thursday, September 5, 2024, when Fulani Jihadists blocked the Agbagbe-Naka road in Gwer-West County and unleashed mayhem on Christians, killing two persons and injuring many.
The victims, Mr. Kwaor Hassan and Mr. Timothy Tor, were members of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Parish Agagbe Precinct. Rev. Fr. Cletus Bua, the parish priest, described the carnage in an exclusive interview: “The victims were coming from Agagbe to Naka at about 4 pm (15 hr GMT) to get food for their families when they met their deaths. The deceased and others were suddenly ambushed by well-armed Fulani terrorists who blocked the road and started shooting everyone on sight.”
Attacks on Benue Communities Under-reported
Attacks, kidnappings, and killings have surged in recent times, becoming daily occurrences without any decisive action from the government to halt the carnage. Most of these incidents are either underreported or not reported at all, leading to a breakdown of trust between the locals and both the government and mainstream media houses in Nigeria.
David Onyilokwu Idah, a former Commissioner in the United Nations Human Rights Commission, also has expressed concerns about the media’s attitude towards the killings in Benue. “Television houses and newspapers no longer report on the massacres taking place in the state. They are afraid of being politically incorrect and want to please the Federal Government,” Idah noted.
Numerous reports of massacres in Benue State by TruthNigeria reporters give the identity of the attackers as criminals speaking the Fula language, which is the language of Nigeria’s Fulani ethnicity. The motive of the attacks is to force indigenous farmers, who in Benue are 80 percent Roman Catholic, to leave their settlements so that Fulani herders can occupy the fertile pastures and farmlands.
TV anchors in Lagos and Abuja routinely report that the massacres are the end result of “farmer-herder clashes,” which is the operative phrase preferred by the federal authorities as well as the U.S. Mission in Abuja. That narrative is dubious, since the attackers are always Muslim, and the victims are virtually always Muslim, according to Persecution.org.
“Nothing will change for Nigerians terrorized by jihadists acting with impunity until the Nigerian people unite with one voice to rebuke the religious-based violence at the heart of this genocide,” according to Dede Laugesen, Executive Director of Save the Persecuted Christians. “It’s not a consequence of climate change, and it’s not a conflict between herders and farmers. This is genocide pure and simple. All who try to explain it otherwise are culpable,” said Laugesen.
Nigerian Military Accused of Complicity in Fulani Terrorist Attacks
The Nigerian military has come under intense scrutiny for its failure to prevent persistent attacks by Fulani terrorists in Benue State, despite early warnings. Thought leaders and religious leaders have openly accused the military of conniving with the terrorists, leading to unnecessary loss of lives.
Rev. Fr. Cletus Bua, Parish Priest of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church Agagbe, expressed his frustration in an interview with TruthNigeria: “When the attack started, I quickly called the Commander of Sector 6 of the Operation Whirl Stroke, stationed in Agagbe, but no action was taken. He told me that the military High Command has not given him orders to take action, adding that the community should call President Tinubu if they are not satisfied with their efforts.”
Rev. Fr. Bua lamented that the unprovoked attacks and killings have been persistent, leaving the community in a state of fear and despair.
Kenneth Agbu, Vershima’s elder brother, also accused the military of inaction. “There are two military checkpoints very close to where my two younger ones were killed by the Fulani terrorists, but from the reports available to us, the military did nothing.”
Mike Odeh James and Olikita Ekani are reporters for TruthNigeria
Originally published in TruthNigeria, September 12, 2024
