The Benue State Government has blamed the recent attacks on communities in the state on criminals bent on grabbing land from the victims.
The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Benue State, Tersoo Kula, disclosed this while speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday.
He said the perpetrators, whom he described as terrorists, invade communities with motorcycles and AK-47, and carry out their gruesome acts with the aim of sending the residents out of their ancestral homes.
“What is happening in Benue State is rather unfortunate,” Kula said.
“Some people have decided to organise themselves and plan criminal attacks on the state. From what we are seeing, they come with the intent to grab land,” Kula said.
The governor aide, who confirmed that the death toll from the attacks on communities in the Ukum and Logo local government areas had risen to 72, said the organised nature of the violence indicated an agenda beyond what was often reported as farmer-herder clashes.
He said, “They kill, maim, and chase people away from their ancestral homes, and then seek to occupy the lands left behind by the natives.
“This is not what you would call a farmer-herder clash. This is outright terrorism.”
Detailing the most recent wave of violence in the two local government areas, he said the attackers arrived from a neighbouring state in large numbers.
“They came on motorbikes, armed with AK-47 rifles, and attacked people in farms, markets, and even worship centers. That is why the death toll has risen to 72,” Kula added.
