By Andrew Oota, Abuja

Following the spate of insecurity across Benue state, Gideon Dooyum Inyom, a strategic innovation consultant, public policy advocate, and former senatorial aspirant for Benue North-West, has again called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to order an immediate and independent investigation into the killings.

The Public Policy Advocate who described the pogrom as a “terror corridor” enabling systematic and sustained attacks on farming communities across the Benue–Nasarawa border axis” maintained that time has come for decisive measures against the terrorists. Inyom is a Harvard Kennedy School-certified professional in Innovation for Economic Development and convener of the #NoLimitsIDG platform, a civic movement known for its evidence-based advocacy on justice, security, and leadership accountability in Nigeria. He previously served as Media Coordinator for the defunct Movement Against Fulani Occupation (MAFO), a grassroots coalition whose advocacy contributed to the establishment of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law of 2017 in Benue State.Inyom’s call follows President Tinubu’s recent solidarity visit to Benue, insisting that the time for symbolic gestures has passed,”what is now urgently required is federal intervention—decisive, strategic, and uncompromising in its commitment to justice and protection of lives.”Speaking under the #NoLimitsIDG advocacy platform, Inyom expressed disappointment at what he termed “conflicting and incomplete” briefings presented to the President regarding the true nature of the attacks in communities such as Yelwata, Guma, and Gwer-West. According to him, the omission of critical details in the President’s security briefings amounts to a breach of national intelligence and has wider implications for the federal government’s ability to respond effectively.“When the President of the Federal Republic is not fully and accurately briefed on a sustained campaign of violence against Nigerian citizens, we are no longer dealing with an isolated failure. We are looking at a breach of national security,” Inyom said. “The most tragic part is this: there have been no consequences for this failure. And this is why our people continue to die without justice.”He submitted that many of the coordinated attacks on Benue communities originate from Nasarawa State.”According to testimonies from victims, security reports, and years of consistent patterns, attackers—believed to be well-armed militia groups—frequently cross into Benue through unprotected rural paths, commit violent acts, and retreat back into Nasarawa without being intercepted.”Inyom stated the need to “Investigate Nasarawa’s cross-border role in these attacks.”“There is a blood-stained route between Nasarawa and Benue. The attackers use it freely. They cross into our state, kill our people, burn our homes, and escape across the border before help can arrive. This is not speculation—it is documented, and it has gone on for far too long,” Inyom stressed.He described the President’s recommendation that the Governors of Benue and Nasarawa should “liaise” as insufficient and counterproductive.“We have had inter-state discussions before. We have had dialogue. We have had diplomatic talks. None of it has stopped the killings. We don’t need more handshakes across government houses. We need a federal, impartial investigation with clear directives and enforcement from the highest office in the land.”Inyom also drew attention to what he called a “critical silence” during the President’s visit—the lack of emphasis on the enforcement of Benue State’s Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law.He added that the silence on the part of the President and top federal officials during the recent visit only reinforced the impression that Benue is being left to fight alone.He however commended the courage of the Tor Tiv, His Royal Majesty Professor James Ayatse, who, during the President’s visit, spoke candidly about the realities facing his people.He stressed that, “The world is watching. Our children are watching. And history will ask: when Benue cried out, who answered?”

From Attah Ede, Makurdi

Following the recent attacks on some communities by suspected Fulani Herdsmen, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), said that it has recalled all corps members serving in communities under attacks and relocated them to designated “family houses” in Makurdi for their safety.

The Benue State NYSC Coordinator, Veronica Garba made this known in a chat with journalists on Thursday. She intimated that immediately they got information about the crisis, the management communicated with the police, who evacuated the corps members from both Yelewata and Daudu areas. ”The corps members were repatriated from crisis-hit Yelewata and Daudu communities with the help of the police and safely relocated to Makurdi.”They are currently being accommodated at facilities belonging to the Nigeria Corpers Christian Fellowship (NCCF), National Association of Catholic Corps Members (NACCM), and the Muslim Corpers Association of Nigeria (MCAN).“We do not joke with the safety of our corps members because we take them as our children,” Garba said. “As soon as we heard about the crisis, we contacted the Commissioner of Police, who detailed his officers to help us evacuate our corps members.””A head count was conducted after the evacuation, and all corps members were accounted for. “None was missing. We arranged with the heads of all the family houses and got them settled in Makurdi for now, pending when the situation will improve.The coordinator appealed to parents to be calm, saying that their children were safe, saying that with the relocation of security chiefs to Benue, the situation would improve.“I am sure that the parents of our corps members have heard that all the security chiefs have moved to Benue, so they have no reason to fear.“Above all, God, who is the safest security, is everywhere; He is with your children too,” Garba said.

From Attah Ede, Makurdi

The Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Yelewata community who were displaced, following the heinous coordinated attacks by suspected Fulani Herdsmen on Thursday engaged in protest over their bad condition of living.Recall that, the permanent secretary ministry of human and disaster management and executive secretary, State Emergency Management Agency(SEMA), Dr.

James Iorpuu, had on Saturday evacuated IDPs as a result of the attack to a designated temporary camp located at International Market Makurdi. The protesters took to the streets of Makurdi and blocked all the major entrances leading to the temporary camp located at George Akume Way Makurdi, to register their displeasures and maltreatments being experienced since upon arrival at the camp.The IDPs accused State government officials of diverting relief materials donated to them by public spirited individuals and humanitarian organisations, a development they said had brought untold hardship to them.One of the IDPs who identified himself as Fidelis Igban from the Yelewata community lamented they have lost three people in the camp as a result of starvation and the bad condition of the environment.”Imagine, people would come to the camp and donate food items and other relief materials to us (IDPs), and once those items were handed over to the officials, it would end up not reaching us.”Just a few days ago, secretary to the government of the federation, Sen. George Akume came to the camp and donated some items for onward distribution to IDPs. Uptil now, we have not seen anything.”The Senior Pastor of Dunamis International Gospel Centre, Dr. Paul Enenche, came here and donated materials for our consumption, yet nothing gets to us. We are starving and dying here. We want to go back to our homes.”We are running away from our comfort homes due to herdsmen attacks after our parents, children and wives were killed and now, we are here facing another critical challenge.“There’s no food, our children are starving, we sleep on the floor, and mosquitoes are almost killing us. We are suffering, and people are dying. Officials overseeing camp management were hoarding and diverting donated materials.Another IDP, Erdoo Targa, said that she was six months pregnant before arriving at the camp and found it difficult to access medical facilities.”Government brought us here and abandoned us. No food, no medical care, hunger is telling us, we are starving and our children are getting sick day by day”. We embarked upon this protest to draw the attention of government and public spirited individuals to our plight”, she stated.She appealed to the State Government and relevant humanitarian agencies to investigate the alleged misconduct and ensure transparency in the distribution of aid meant for us.Efforts to speak with the commissioner for humanitarian and disaster management, Aondoaseer Kude and the executive secretary State Emergency Management Agency SEMA, Dr James Iorpuu, proved abortive as they could not respond to call and text messages.However, the information officer for State Emergency Management Agency SEMA, Tema Ager, said he was not authorised to comment on the alleged protest.”Kindly get across to the head of administration of SEMA or the commissioner for humanitarian and disaster management. They are in a better position to speak to you journalists, thanks”, Ager said.