Africa-Press – Nigeria. Comrade Daniel Onjeh, a former senatorial candidate under the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benue South, has said the recent massacre in Yelwata, Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, is not a clash between farmers and herders as often reported.
Instead, he described it as a well-coordinated attack by armed militias that should be treated as a national emergency.
He disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
Onjeh said over 200 people were killed in the June 13 night attack, which he believes was carried out by Fulani militias. He warned against the use of outdated narratives.
“This is no longer about farmers and herders. The people killed were mostly students murdered in their rooms, not farmers on the field. And the attackers are not herders, they are militias for hire,” he stated.
Onjeh also argued that most genuine herders and farmers have already left Benue due to insecurity and the enforcement of the state’s Anti-Open Grazing Law.
“Many of the cows you see in Benue today belong to powerful individuals who violate the law openly,” he claimed.
He cautioned that referring to these actors as “herdsmen” dignifies their criminality and offers them a form of communal protection.
“Let us make a clear distinction: calling them herdsmen grants them legitimacy and shields them behind a recognised trade. These are not herders; they are militias and available to the highest bidder,” he stated.
He urged President Bola Tinubu to view the Benue crisis from a broader angle, saying political sabotage, armed militias, and land grabbing are the real issues.
“Mr President must act with urgency. These killings are not random, they are political and criminal. If we continue to call these people herdsmen, we are shielding criminals with a legitimate identity,” he said.
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