June 08, (THEWILL) – Governor Hyacinth Alia, known for his altruism, remains passionate about the defence and utmost care for the people of Benue State, and is having sleepless nights using all legitimate approaches to handle the situation, including the needed diplomacy.
Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Sir Tersoo Kula, who made the assertion in Makurdi on Saturday, said the governor cannot trade with the blood of the innocent people of the state, who are soulless herders innocently murdered.
“His assertion that some politicians are complicit in certain violent activities is not baseless, rather, it reflects realities familiar to those who have closely followed the security challenges in the state. Benue currently grapples with attacks from two distinct groups.
“Foreign terrorist herders invading rural communities, and Local bandits and gangsters, primarily active in the Sankera axis. It is within this context that the Governor emphasised that some of these local outlaws, particularly in Sankera, are being shielded and motivated by certain politicians based in Abuja”, Kula explained.
According to Sir Kula, during his live appearance on TV, the Governor made a clear distinction between the marauding terrorists’ attacks and the outlaws’ heinous activities in the state, particularly in the Sankera and Kwande axis.
He said it is the outlaws at Sankera that the governor emphasised are kept, and are often motivated for nefarious activities by some political leaders in Abuja.
“As far as the issue of insecurity bedevilling the state is concerned, Governor Hyacinth Alia has never shied from calling a spade a spade, hence his declaration that the kind of Fulanis attacking the state are foreigners. When he made this assertion, it attracted criticism from predictable quarters.”
The CPS said that such was subsequently validated by the Defence Headquarters, where, when addressing the press in Abuja, the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba, affirmed that intelligence gathered by the military revealed that many of the attackers are indeed non-Nigerians. Buba was specific that foreign herders are behind attacks on Benue and Plateau communities.
“As the Chief Security officer of the state, the Governor is often privy to intelligence that must not always be divulged to the public. Let us not forget that he clearly told the world that he is privy to the preliminary report from the Judicial Commission of Inquiry for the unrest at Zaki-Biam”, Kula stated.
He, therefore, called on people to calm down as the report will surely be out and the public will be able to know the findings.
