Buhari finally breaks his silence on Benue massacre promising to punish the perpetrators

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has finally broken his deafening silence about the recent massacre of about 80 people in Benue State by Fulani cattle herdsmen promising that the perpetrators of the ghastly act will be punished.

Last week, armed Fulani herdsmen attacked Benue State in an unprecedented orgy of violence, butchering about 80 innocent people. This latest attack has attracted widespread condemnation and President Buhari has been heavily criticised for remaining silent on the matter and refusing to act.

Many of the president's critics have attributed his silence to the fact that he is an ethnic Fulani himself, rears cattle and is a patron of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (Macban). After a week of stinging criticism, President Buhari finally broke his silence on the matter today, promising to prosecute the perpetrators of the killings.

Earlier today, the president, who met with leaders from Benue State at the presidential villa in  Abuja, called on the government and people of Benue State to exercise restraint following the recent attacks on their communities. President Buhari said all those involved in the conflict that culminated in loss of lives would not escape justice, including any illegally armed militia in the state.

Furthermore, the president commiserated with all the victims of the attacks and the families who lost loved ones and properties, noting that the government would make efforts to ameliorate the situation of all the victims. He said the relevant agencies had been directed to start catering for their humanitarian needs.

President Buhari said: “Your Excellency, the governor and all the leaders here, I am appealing to you to try to restrain your people. I assure you that the police, the Department of State Security and other security agencies had been directed to ensure that all those behind the mayhem get punished.

“I ask you in the name of God to accommodate your country men. You can also be assured that I am just as worried and concerned with the situation."

He also told the delegation that his administration had already begun a process of finding lasting solution to the perennial challenge of herdsmen conflict with farmers and communities around the country. President Buhari said the inspector-general of police had been directed to relocate to the state to provide security for lives and properties, urging all Benue indigenes to trust the security agencies and report all suspicious cases of movements in the state.

In his remarks, the Benue State governor Samuel Ortom, said the tension would be reduced with the federal government’s intervention to find a lasting solution to the herdsmen attacks. The Tor Tiv, Professor James Ortese Iorzua Ayatse, said his entire domain had been thrown into mourning due to the incessant attacks.