Southeast leaders, on Saturday, expressed concern over threats against Ndigbo living in other parts of the country.

They made their feelings known during an enlarged meeting between the Southeast Governors’ Forum, Federal and State lawmakers, ministers, religious and traditional leaders, as well as the Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

The meeting is a follow up to the consultation the Presidential delegation, led by the Minister of Defence, rtd Maj.Gen. Bashir Magashi, had with leaders in the zone, on June 11, following rising insecurity in the region.

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Addressing journalists at the end of the meeting, Chairman of the South East Governors’ Forum and Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, said the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to one nation built on fairness, love and respect for one another.

He, however, said the zone was saddened by threats against Ndigbo, calling on leaders of other regions in the country to rise to the occasion.

“We have noted threats by some groups in some other regions against our people of South East. While we firmly promise to protect every one either from our own region or other regions living in our place, we call on leaders in other regions to take of note the threats and take proper action,” he said.

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Umahi said the leaders will set up committee to articulate the demands of the region, particularly as it relates to insecurity and meet with the Federal Government.

He regretted that although leaders in he south east had reassured people from other regions of their safety, Ndigbo were still being threatened, especially in the north.

He maintained that the impression that leaders in the zone were silent over the rising wave of agitation was wrong as they have come out publicly to speak against the agitations.

“We have again endorsed Ebubeagu and asked them to work with security agencies to ensure the protection of lives and property of the people in the south east,” he said.

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Suspected Fulani herdsmen have again attacked some communities in Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue State and killed no fewer than 19 people, among them were children.

Some of the communities attacked were; Tse Amgbem, Udam near Aondoana, and Agbanu Seghev/Ukuse all in Gwer West LGA area of Benue State.

According to an indigene who claimed to have escaped the attack, Terna Abende, the attackers came through Akpachi in Otukpo Local Government Area to attack Tse Amgbem.

Abenda said, “About 5am Monday the attackers stormed Tse Amgbem and Udam near the Aondoana community and killed several people and several others injured.

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“The attackers who are suspected to be Fulani herdsmen also burnt down houses.”

It was reliably gathered that the suspected herdsmen had earlier on Sunday ambushed some motorcyclists at separate areas on Naka Nagi Agagbe and Naka/Makurdi roads killing six persons.

An indigene of Gwer West LGA who identified himself as Albert said that herdsmen had taken over seven wards of the council; Sengev, Gaagev/Tongev, Saghev/Ukusu , Tough, Ateer/ Ijaha ,Gaambe Ushin, and Mbachohon Avihijme.

Confirming the attacks, Chairman of Gwer West LGA, Mrs Grace Igbabon, told our correspondent on the phone that eighteen people were killed in three separate attacks in the council area between Sunday and Monday.

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According to her, “We had about six persons yesterday (Sunday) and 13 people today.

“I was told that the attackers were suspected Fulani herdsmen who attacked the Mbamodu community and killed 13 people and several others injured. The attackers burnt down several houses in the community.”

The chairman added, “Other incidents happened on Sunday at the other side of Mbachon, some motorcyclists were riding on the road and they saw a man in military uniform who flagged them down.

“I was told that in the process of slowing down, another set of people who possibly had laid ambush came out from the bush and shot at them, four of them died and one later escaped.

“Also along Naka/Makurdi Road on Sunday, they (suspected herdsmen) killed two others.”

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When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer of Benue State Command, DSP Catherine Anene, said she only heard about the attack on some communities near Aondoana in the local government but had no details.

(PUNCH)

The Chairman of Benue socio-cultural organisations and President General of Mzough U Tiv, MUT, worldwide, Chief Iorbee Ihagh has asked the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu to retract his recent statement vilifying Governor Ortom over his outburst on the recent attack on Abagena Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs’ camp by suspected herdsmen.

Addressing the media Sunday in Makurdi, Chief Ihagh said the statement by the presidential aide which accused Governor Ortom of politicizing the killings in Benue State was tantamount to dancing on the graves of those who lost their lives in the ceaseless killings in the state.

Governor Ortom had after last Tuesday’s attack on the Abagena IDPs camp called on President Muhammadu Buhari to take steps to protect the lives and property of all Nigerians and stop giving people the impression that he had a special preference for Fulani herders.

The presidential spokesman had in a reaction on behalf of the President said among others that “the lives of fellow citizens should not be desecrated by deploying them in political diatribe which unfortunately appeared to be the intent of the string of emotional attacks and blame laid at the doors of the President for those killings by Governor Ortom.”

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In his reaction to the statement by Mallam Shehu, Chief Ihagh said, “I must say without equivocation that this statement from the presidential aide has gone a long way to expose the hidden agenda and insensitivity of the Buhari led federal government.

“It is sad, to say the least, that the federal government has given us every reason to believe that it is complicit in the killings in Benue by herdsmen militia simply because we have a grazing law and our people rejected the RUGA and Cattle colony policy of the federal government.

“The fact that Mallam Shehu in that statement failed to reprove the masterminds of the attacks in Benue clearly exposed how our lives in this part of the country worth nothing to Mallam Shehu and those he works for.

“Shehu accusing Governor Ortom of politicizing the killings in Benue because he cried out, is tantamount to dancing on the graves of our murdered loved ones and it is totally unacceptable and we demand a retraction of that statement and an apology tendered to our people who are daily grieving the gruesome murder of their loved ones.

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“We must remind this federal government that Nigerians are today in this security quagmire because the government openly gave its support to armed herdsmen while they slaughtered Nigerians in their ancestral homes all in a bid to take over our land.

“The armed herdsmen who carry AK47 all over the place in a bid to take over our land complemented that with kidnappings and robberies. And that grew into the monster we have today that is rocking the very foundation of this country.

“This government would not declare these armed herders as terrorists as proclaimed by the Global Index on Terrorism but an unarmed group like the IPOB was so declared a terrorist group and outlawed.

“That is the government we have in Nigeria. A government that has opened up our country to all Fulanis from all parts of African in order to chase us away from our ancestral land and take over the country. That is their agenda but I want to pass a message to them. They must realize that this is Nigeria where the will of God, even if its delays will eventually prevail.

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“For us in Benue, we have resolved to stand by our Governor and our grazing law which we collectively asked for and we got from a listening administration led by Samuel Ortom.

“We are not against anyone engaging in animal husbandry in Benue but all we demand is that such should adhere strictly to the provisions of our law which is ranching and anything short of that will not be accepted by our people who are always ready to defend their land from a people who are on a mission to occupy Nigeria,” he added.

(VANGUARD)