Angry youths in Benue South protested on Saturday during the All Progressives Congress primaries, demanding immediate action in response to ongoing killings in areas of the Idoma-speaking region.
Protesters barricaded a major roadway in the Apa Local Government Area, Benue State, interrupting vehicle traffic and political activity.
Carrying a coffin and placards with various slogans, the marchers chanted “No election” and demanded that political activities cease while civilians were being massacred by armed attackers.
According to the protesting teenagers, the security situation in the Apa Local Government Area has deteriorated drastically, with multiple attacks purportedly carried out by suspected armed herders and other criminals.
Parts of Benue State have become a hotbed for incessant terrorist attacks, resulting in the loss of lives and properties, while many others have been forced to abandon their community to seek refuge at IDP camps.
Chronicle NG reports that no fewer than seven people were killed by armed herders in the Channel One community, a border settlement in the Ukemberagya/Tswarev Council Ward of the Logo Local Government Area of Benue State.
According to a local named Amos, the village is located along the Arufu-Wukari Road of Taraba State.
Amos informed the press on Monday that the incident took place on Sunday night.
According to Amos, the suspected herders stormed the neighborhood around 11 p.m. on Sunday and shot intermittently, prompting inhabitants to leave for safety.
Joseph Anawah, a community leader in the area who confirmed the incident, said six people were slain.
Anawah identified the victims as Akor Gwakyaa, Msooter Gwakyaa, Aondoungwa Michael, Vershima Michael, Terna Michael, and Msughter Terzungwe.
He added, “It is also confirmed that some people, whose names are yet to be identified, sustained life-threatening injuries and have been hospitalized at different medical facilities in Anyiin Town.
“Those in critical condition, numbering about seven, have been taken to Ugba town in Logo LGA for further treatment.
“The attackers came in large numbers, armed with firearms, and rode on motorcycles. It is alleged that they are camped at Shaor, one of the deserted villages identified in several intelligence reports as a base for marauders in the Logo LGA.”
Anawah stated that people of the affected and neighboring settlements have fled to other villages out of fear of more attacks.
He urged both the state and federal administrations to step up coordinated clearance efforts to remove suspected marauders from Shaor and other empty settlements mentioned in prior intelligence assessments.
He also proposed forming a collaborative interstate security task force with Benue, Nasarawa, and Taraba states to monitor suspected terrorists’ cross-border travels and restrict routes used to launch attacks on border communities in Logo LGA.
Clement Kav, chairman of Logo LGA, confirmed the event, saying seven individuals were murdered and four others injured during the Sunday night attack.
“They killed seven people and injured four others. They came, carried out the attack, and fled,” he said.
Kav added that he had informed the Commissioner of Police, Ifeanyi Emenari, and the Special Adviser on Homeland Security about the occurrence.
DSP Udeme Edet, spokesman for the state Police Command, stated that she had not yet received the report but would offer updates as soon as they became available.
She had not responded at the time of filing this report.
Killings by suspected armed herders and local bandits have increased in recent days around the state.
Last Thursday, gunmen attacked the Olegabulu community in Agatu LGA, killing a traditional ruler, his wife, his son, and two other people.
On Saturday night, armed men suspected of belonging to local militias killed three mourners and kidnapped two more as they returned from a burial service in Sati Ikov Council Ward, Ushongo Local Government Area.
