…Promises pardon, amnesty, rehabilitation to repentant criminals
From Scholastica Onyeka, Makurdi
Benue State is the nation’s acclaimed food basket because of its rich agricultural produce. It is also one of the choice destinations in the Middle Belt for tourists and investors.
But all these have been threatened as herdsmen, bandits, kidnappers and hoodlums are having a field day, killing and maiming innocent residents of the state.
From 2018 till date, Benue has witnessed countless gruesome killings as no month passes without a bloodbath in the state. If it’s not herdsmen killing farmers, it will be bandits opening gun fire on innocent villagers or mourners kidnapped and killed.
At other times, Benue brothers are at war with each other, killing, maiming and destroying properties in their communities worth billions of naira.
The place and time of killing is immaterial. They kill people in churches, market square, at night and in broad daylight. The killings have continued unabated. Now, the Benue valley is flowing with blood.
The most recent was on July 8, 2023 when bloodthirsty gunmen, suspected to be bandits, invaded Zaki Akpuuna and Diom communities of Mbaterem district in Ukum Local Government Area of the state and killed 24 persons in cold blood.
It was said that the attackers, riding on motorcycles, invaded two communities at about 8am and started shooting sporadically, killing people, mostly young men and leaving many wounded.During the attack, several houses were set ablaze by the gunmen.
Though the police confirmed eight deaths, residents from the area said by the time the attackers retreated not fewer than 24 bodies were immediately recovered while a search was launched to find missing persons.
Those killed at Akpuuna village include kator Terwase, Aondowase Kator, Albert Tsavnongo, Mbaalumunga Felix, Terzungwe Kartyo, Hangeior Agudu, Terkimbi Umough, Ushahemba Akerchi, Friday Ezekiel, Terwase mkoholga and Ayu Ageva Vaakaa.
Other are John Ikpor, Bem Shima, Vanger Kwaghkaa, Shaagee Tyokaa, Mfedoo Mamfe, Koholga Sase, Iorlumun Dai, Kwaghmande Mngueorga, Msugh Terwase, Ngutor Oraduen, Iortange Uye and Aker Orgema.
Similarly, on July 16, 2023, unknown gunmen riding on motorcycles stormed Igba-Ukyor settlement area of Daav, Ikov council ward of Ushongo LGA at about 8pm, shot indiscriminately with automatic firearms, killing five persons on the spot. It was said that after carrying out the mayhem in Daav, they proceeded to Tim-Gbaka, a nearby settlement, and also murdered one person. Up till now, their identities and motives have not been ascertained.
However, days after the Akpuuna attack, Benue State governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, visited the community for an on-the -spot assessment of the incident and to commiserate with the affected families over the killing of their loved ones.
Alia was not happy over the killings at Akpuuna and other places in the state and wasted no time in expressing it. He has, however, assured the people of the area of his administration’s willingness to root out all criminals elements and make the state free of crime.
Like his predecessor, Governor Samuel Ortom, Alia has adopted the carrot approach to end insecurity in the state. Recall that Ortom who met a precarious security situation in the state after his election in 2015, adopted the carrot and stick approach, granting amnesty to a host of repented criminals after which he came down heavily on those who refused to embrace the programme.
By the end of the amnesty programme, the then Ortom, with the help of security agencies, announced the recovery of over 366 arms from 175 youths out of over 700 who embraced the programme. In the same vein, Alia has stated that his administration is ready to grant amnesty to repented criminals in the state.
He expressed sadness at the killings, wondering why able bodied young men, who could be useful to the state and to themselves, have chosen to hide in the forest, only to come out and cause havoc to the people.
Alia noted that like he promised during his electioneering campaigns, his administration will rehabilitate, train and reintegrate those currently hiding in the forests if they will come out and embrace peace. He said he will do so only if they repent and choose a life free of crime.
He warned traditional rulers aiding and abetting crime in the area to desist from such just as he cautioned those hoarding vital information about the criminals and their activities to stop or face dethronement.
While re-echoing his administration’s open door for serious investors as well President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s plans for the state, the governor warned that on no account should anyone in the state perpetrate acts that will discourage such plans. He stressed his administration’s readiness for peace, insisting that anyone who is not ready for peace should leave the state.
He expressed total displeasure over what he described as a heinous crime and a grave sin against God and mankind, and directed security agents in the state to arrest those behind the unlawful act and bring them to book.
The district head of the area, Tyoor John Kungwa, explained that the attackers visited the massacre on his people as a way of intimidating them into submission. According to him, he had mobilised his people to resist advances by the gangsters into his domain, a development he said angered the attackers.
He said: “The attackers had called me on the phone, asking me if I knew the consequences of preventing them from operating in my area.
“I told them I cannot compromise security in my domain. They told me to get prepared as they were coming for me. The killings happened a few days after the attackers made their threat.”
The All Progressives Congress (APC), Benue Chapter, also strongly condemned the barbaric killing of innocent people by gunmen in Akpuuna Community, Mbazum Council Ward in Ukum Local Government Area of the state.
The APC expressed its sincere condolences to the victims’ families and pleads with them to look to God and let go of their grief in the knowledge that justice will eventually be served.
The party also extended sympathy to the people of Ukum and to all of Benue people, encouraging them to maintain peace and observe the law during this difficult time.
The party, in a statement signed by the state publicity secretary, Daniel Ihomun, urged the security agencies to support the Alia led administration in maintaining law and order, and making sure that all the culprits are brought to deserving justice to serve as a deterrent.
While the governor uses the carrot to lure the criminal elements to repentance, so that peace and order can return to Benue and people can sleep with their eyes closed and go about their legitimate businesses without harassment, it is also expected that there would be a time he would used the stick because if you spare the rod, you spoil the child.
