Frustrated Gov Ortom urges Benue IDPs to return home, confront AK47-bearing herdsmen with stones

As killer herdsmen continue their carnage across Benue State in spite of the heavy presence of Nigerian soldiers and other security personnel, Governor Samuel Ortom, has said that it has gotten to a point when citizens of the state have to stop running from their killers.

He told the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), who have deserted their homes to return home and use stones to defend themselves against the AK47-bearing herdsmen, who have continued to kill the citizens of the state with reckless abandon.

The governor stated this on Tuesday when he visited IDPs who were forced to flee their homes following armed herdsmen attack on Naka, Gwer West Local Government Area of the state.

Noting that killings in the state had become one too many, Ortom expressed worry that even security personnel were not spared from killings in the state.

“David in the Bible used ordinary stone to defeat his enemy, it is now time for you to stay at home and use the stone in your homes to defend yourself instead of running away.

“I believe in the rule of law, equity and fairness, but I cannot continue to keep IDPs and l can’t afford to have another IDPs in Gwer West. This must stop. We must stop truncating the future of our younger generation.

“When we allow laws to be violated and nobody takes action, it then allows for impunity and when you give room to impunity, it will result to anarchy which will in turn breed a lawless society.

“Therefore, we the citizens must rise up to support the security agencies by way of providing lawful and necessary logistics such as information, equipment and financial support to back up their operations.

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“Just yesterday (Monday), a soldier was killed in Guma, security agents are not spared. Security challenges are enormous. The gruesome murder of 24 people by Fulani herdsmen is quite condemnable. Time has come, if you are willing to live in Benue State, you must be ready and willing to be law abiding.”

Ortom explained that his government was strategizing with traditional rulers and other necessary organs of government to see how the vigilante team could be strengthened and given full legal backing to enable the group assist the security personnel in confronting killer herdsmen and other criminal activities in the state.

 

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