What one expected after such level of destruction was not a “peace
talk”. One expected the police and other security agencies to have swung
into action and bring the perpetrators to book. Anything short of this
amounts to complicity, negligence, cowardice, and injustice to fellow
citizens wickedly hacked down by an evil group.
The IGP’s failure, neglect or refusal to arrest the leader of the
herdsmen, who appeared to have known everything about the attack from
his narrative at the meeting, and an order for the seizure of all the
weapons of the militia is criminal in itself, and the IGP has a lot of
explanation to do to Nigerians.
The recent massacre of the people of Agatu in Benue State by
suspected Fulani herdsmen has left a very sour taste in the mouths of
well-meaning Nigerians. What baffles a lot of Nigerians, more than the
actual killings, was the pussyfooting with which the authorities have
reacted to the issue.
In a situation where innocent and defenceless Nigerians, including
hapless women and helpless children were massacred in such a large
number, with brazen notoriety and in one fell swoop, which should have
attracted a massive, definitive and relentless manhunt for the
perpetrators, the government is yet to do anything concrete to smoke
these people out and make them face justice for their crimes.
However, after this pogrom, the perpetrators were invited by the
country’s chief police officer to a “roundtable peace talk” as ordered
by the president!
In this case of the Agatu massacre, the leader of the cowardly Fulani
herdsmen appeared before the Inspector-General of Police and sounded
bullish, while reeling out the reasons why his men had to kill harmless
Nigerian citizens in their hundreds. He said that the people of Agatu
killed their cows and therefore must pay for these with their blood,
their land, churches, schools, houses, etc.
He made the IGP understand that the herdsmen are a law unto
themselves – a people who are not obliged to report to the police about
those they suspect to be killing their cows.
The tragedy of the whole episode is that after the “peace talk”, the
leader and his delegation walked away from the meeting without being
arrested, interrogated and or prosecuted. No one, not even the IGP dared
to ask them about the source of their weapons.
It is unbelievable that the Fulani herdsmen were not questioned about
their weapons nor were these weapons seized. The IGP allowed them to go
and “sin no more”, possibly with pats on the back, while keeping their
weapons that are enough to overrun vast communities.
What a country!
While those who embark on peaceful protests without arms in the South
are mowed down by security agents, the Fulani herdsmen who murder
people in their hundreds in the Middle Belt and other places are invited
to “peace talks” by the same security agents. What a tragedy!
Is it then any surprise that just days after the Agatu massacre, the
herdsmen marched down to Ngorukgan, Tse Chia, Deghkia and Nhumbe, all in
Logo Local Government Area of the same Benue State, hacking down anyone
in sight?
As if that was not horrid enough, these same blood-thirsty herdsmen
had the temerity to attack the convoy of Senator David Mark who was in
Agatu on a solidarity visit and fact-finding mission. This is in spite
of the fact that the senator had the security cover of armed personnel
in his entourage who, of course, returned the fire of the herdsmen.
The most tragic of all is that in his recent visit to Minna where he
held a stakeholders’ meeting with the people of the area, the
Inspector-General of Police mindlessly claimed that the number of
victims in the Agatu killings had been exaggerated.
He said: “I was around; I travelled to Makurdi, I did not see where
300 people were buried…If you kill, you don’t just bury; you must take
the corpse to the police station before you bury. We don’t have that
number of people”. Yet our IGP failed to give the number of casualties
he actually saw. This is highly unfortunate!
This is most disgraceful coming from the nation’s number one police
officer. The approximate driving distance from Agatu to Makurdi is
239km, a journey of about four to five hours. With such great expanse,
how exhaustive could have the IGP been before reaching the apparently
contrived conclusion that he did not see where 300 people were buried.
How could he even see these when he stayed in the comfort of the
state capital and nowhere near the theatre of the pogrom? Was he
expecting the Agatus to take their dead through that great distance to
bury, so that he could see them?
Was the IGP expecting the Agatus who fled the scene of massacre in
all directions and are today taking refuge in places other than their
homes to have the luxury of having time to collect their dead and bury
them, even when those alive to bury the dead are still scared stiff of
going back to their communities? Was he expecting them to first carry
the dead to the police station that was also not spared by the Fulani
militia who burnt every building in sight?
If we must call a spade by its name and no other, it is highly
unfortunate that IGP Arase would make some of the claims he did – it was
unexpected of him.
Apart from the foregoing, there are still many questions for the IGP
to answer: Why did he not get to Agatu to see things for himself? What
was he afraid of? Why did he choose to see things from 239 kilometres
away? He could as well have remained in Abuja and received reports from
the field.
Since the authorities have proved to be powerless in this matter, the
least we owe those murdered in Agatu and other places is to continue to
cry for justice on their behalf so that we are not caught in the web of
inadvertent complicity in a crime committed by a felonious lot.
Contrast this to the report of Senator David Mark who braved the odds
and visited Agatu, even when he came under the heavy unprovoked attack
of the herdsmen, and one would discover the needless copious
discrepancies between their reports, one coming from the field and the
other from outside it.
On getting to Agatu, David Mark had lamented the barbaric actions of
the herdsmen who, in any case, have been rated the fourth most dangerous
terrorist group in the whole world by the Global Terrorism Index. He
said “I’m shocked beyond words at the extent of destruction I have seen
here in Agatu today.
This is unbelievable. It is unimaginable. Nothing whatsoever
justifies the brazen act of destruction meted out to the people of
Agatu. My heart bleeds”. The difference is clear.
What one expected after such level of destruction was not a “peace
talk”. One expected the police and other security agencies to have swung
into action and bring the perpetrators to book. Anything short of this
amounts to complicity, negligence, cowardice, and injustice to fellow
citizens wickedly hacked down by an evil group.
The IGP’s failure, neglect or refusal to arrest the leader of the
herdsmen, who appeared to have known everything about the attack from
his narrative at the meeting, and an order for the seizure of all the
weapons of the militia is criminal in itself, and the IGP has a lot of
explanation to do to Nigerians. The failures on the part of our security
agencies have made the herdsmen grow bolder to spread their deadly
attacks to other parts of the country. This is most unfortunate!
While those who embark on peaceful protests without arms in the South
are mowed down by security agents, the Fulani herdsmen who murder
people in their hundreds in the Middle Belt and other places are invited
to “peace talks” by the same security agents. What a tragedy!
Since the authorities have proved to be powerless in this matter, the
least we owe those murdered in Agatu and other places is to continue to
cry for justice on their behalf so that we are not caught in the web of
inadvertent complicity in a crime committed by a felonious lot.
—————
Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija
The author, Jude Ndukwe, can be reached via jrndukwe@yahoo.co.uk and on Twitter: @stjudendukwe
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