The protracted skir-mishes between the native Tiv communities of Benue State and Fulani herdsmen which have in recent time defied all peace initiatives suddenly took a turn for the worst early in the week with the sacking of Udei community in Guma Local Government Area by an army of Fulani mercenaries who invaded the community.
In these latest onslaught no fewer than 15 persons, including a soldier and newly wedded, Lieutenant Chinedu Ikenna Anyanwu, the Commander of the troops deployed from the 72 Battalion of the Nigerian Army, to maintain the peace in the volatile community lost their lives.
Lt Chinedu Ikenna Anyanwu(r) and his wife shortly after their wedding
The attack left scores sustaining serious gunshot and machete injuries with women and children dislodged from their homes, while property, farmland, economic trees and food barns were destroyed by the rampaging mercenaries.
The lingering skirmishes have turned what is popularly known as the MINDA axis of Benue State into a theatre of war of some sort in view of the fact that just not too long ago a group of Fulani herdsmen also stormed Mbagwen community in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, killing and maiming anyone.
That came just few days after a similar bloodbath in Gwer West Local Government of the state, which left over 8,000 persons homeless with no source of livelihood as houses, huts and food storage barns were also destroyed by same invaders.
Worst hit by the carnage were women and children most of whom took shelter at nearby forests and bushes.
In that heart-rendering incident, the invaders who were suspected to be Fulani mercenaries marched from Tse Abatse Mbabegh all through to Tse Joo, a distance of over 30 kilometres, with little or no resistance from the native Tiv inhabitants.
But this latest attack seems more gruesome and devastating considering the frightening dimension the hostility has taken and the cold-blooded murder of two military personnel drafted to the war zone to maintain the peace in the volatile area.
Vanguard Metro,VM, gathered from Terlumun Igba, one of the victims of the attack who alongside other victims have taken refuge at the North Bank Motor Garage and Saint Mary’s Catholic School in Makurdi, that the assailants had stormed their community in the early hours of Monday, shooting and maiming all in sight.
Igba disclosed that the assailants also burnt down their houses, huts, farmland and economic trees.
“They stormed our villages, shooting and destroying everything in sight. So many were injured but at least six persons must have been killed,” Igba informed.
*Some villagers displaced following the attack by suspected Fulani herdsmen
Another victim of the attack, Tersoo Shima who witnessed the murder of Lt. Ikenna but escaped with bullet wound on his buttocks narrated his ordeal to VM after being rescued by soldiers and brought to the Federal Medical Centre, Makurdi where he is currently receiving medical attention.
According to him: “When the Fulanis attacked our community, at the early hours of Sunday, soldiers came to restore peace and I volunteered to take them to the route from where the Fulanis were launching their attacks.
“As we were marching towards the direction we ran into an ambush laid by the Fulanis; immediately they sight us they (the Fulanis) opened fire on us; but noticing the overwhelming fire power of the attackers, the soldiers decided to beat a retreat in order to re-enforce.
“It was in bid to retreat that the invaders chased after us. It was at that point that the Commander of the soldiers was shot; I was also shot and fell down because I couldn’t move my legs anymore. I also noticed that the army officer that was protecting me from behind also fell down while the other soldiers who did not know that we had gone went and regrouped.
“But at that point, I managed to crawl to a pit and covered myself with grasses. But from where I was I noticed that the invaders got to the spot where the soldiers were lying helpless and I heard some of them speaking and abusing the officer in different strange languages other than Hausa and Fulani. I heard them hacking him with their cutlasses”.
Tersoo explained that after killing Lt. Anyanwu who only got married some four weeks ago, the attackers also beat a retreat and few minutes later he saw a truck load of soldiers arriving the scene and he shouted for help and immediately identified himself.
“They came to my rescue and asked if I saw their Oga. I pointed to where the attackers caught up with him and slaughtered him”.
He stressed that the soldiers rescued him and also recovered the remains of the slain officer.
As he fought back tears he said: “They (the soldiers) were the ones who rescued me and brought me here (Federal Medical Centre) for medical attention”.
He, however, lamented that his wife and children were still missing, pleading that the state and Federal governments wade into the matter so as to save his people from annihilation.
It was also discovered that facilities at the Federal Medical Centre in Makurdi has been overstretched in the last few days following the sudden surge in the number of patients with machete and gunshot injuries from the crisis zone.
The crisis has also triggered off massive influx of persons fleeing from the affected villages into Makurdi town, thereby creating a massive humanitarian crisis in the North Bank area of Makurdi and Daudu Town where the state government opened a camp for the displaced.
Meanwhile Military authorities have arrested an eight-man militia gang suspected of being behind the heinous killing of two military officers on a peace keeping mission in crisis-torn community.
The suspects who were brought to the Benue State Police Headquarters by officers of the 72 Battalion of the Nigeria Army, were handed over to the Police for further investigations and prosecution.
VM gathered from an impeccable source that the gang was a part of a larger gang of militia that unleashed terror in Udei.
Lamenting the level of destruction in his constituency, Mr. David Iorhemba representing Guma State constituency at the State House of Assembly regretted that his people would be faced with the challenge of an impending famine, since according to him, the mercenaries systematically destroyed all farmlands in the communities, thereby creating a sense of food insecurity in the affected villages.
Iorhemba said: “We have a major crisis situation in our hands at the moment because apart from being displaced, the future looks gloomy for my people whose mainstay, which is their farmlands, has all been destroyed”.
The lawmaker pleaded with his colleagues, public-spirited individuals and organisations to come to the rescue of the people whom he said are faced with a looming starvation.
Meanwhile, a Benue State Government delegation led by the Deputy Governor, Chief Steven Lawani and Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Prince Terzoo has visited the crisis zone with a plea on the people to observe restraint and further shed of blood.
Lawani who condemned the heinous murder of the army officers also lamented the level of destruction in the community. He assured that the state government would take steps to find lasting solution to the protracted crisis.
The government directed the Sate Emergency Relief Agency to take urgent steps to provide succor to the displaced persons, most of whom are women and children. And as part of deliberate moves to put an end to the bloodbath, the Deputy Governor also immediately inaugurated a six-man panel of enquiry, under the chairmanship of Mr. Cletus Upaav, a former federal lawmaker, with the responsibilities of finding the immediate and remote causes of the crisis.
Inaugurating the committee in Makurdi, Chief Lawani informed that the committee would liaise with its counterpart from Nasarawa State in the bid to finding lasting solution to the protracted crisis.
Culled from : Vanguard Newspaper
