Violent protests broke out today Wednesday in Makurdi, Benue State’s capital, as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arrived for a sympathy visit following killings by Fulani terrorists.
On arrival, Tinubu, accompanied by Governor Alia Hyacinth and others, drove to the Benue Teaching Hospital in Makurdi, where victims of herders’ attack were admitted.
The prime traditional ruler in the state, Tor Tiv V, His Royal Majesty James Ayatse, described the incessant killings in Benue State as genocidal.
Angry young citizens flocked the streets, tearing the All Progressives Congress (APC) flags and removing the billboards erected in his honour.
Along with declaring a public holiday for the visit, the Benue State Government mounted appreciation billboards along major Makurdi roads with APC flags hoisted by the party’s supporters in anticipation for the President’s arrival.
However, protesting Benue citizens attacked the boards and destroyed them.
Gunshot could also be heard in one the videos as the protesters raged on.
The President wore a nose mask as he visited the hospital wards accessed the injured victims.
The multiple attack which occurred on Friday night till the early hours of Saturday claimed the lives of over 200 residents of the town located at Guma local government area of the state.
While some were shot and hacked to death by the assailants, several others were locked in their rooms and burnt alive.
The tragic incident had since been heavily condemned by Pope Leo XIII and other international figures and organizations.
Later, speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting with President Tinubu, the prime traditional ruler in the state, Tor Tiv V, His Royal Majesty James Ayatse, refuted the widespread claim that the ongoing killings in Benue State were clashes between farmers and herders.
He insisted that what the people of Benue have been subjected to for decades is a calculated and organized genocidal invasion, disguised by misleading narratives.
Ayatse said: “We have grave concerns about the misinformation and misrepresentation of the security crisis in Benue State. It’s not herders-farmers clashes, it’s not communal clashes, it’s not reprisal attacks or skirmishe.”
According to the monarch, this distortion of the facts has fueled misplaced advice suggesting that Benue people should remain tolerant and negotiate with their attackers. He cautioned that such wrong diagnoses will only continue to produce wrong solutions.
“What we are dealing with here in Benue is a calculated, well-planned, full-scale genocidal invasion and land grabbing campaign which has been going on for decades and worsening every year. It’s not about learning to live with your neighbours; it’s about dealing with a war,” he said firmly.
