A sign of the alarming level of violence to which some parts of Nigeria have sunk in recent times is the rampant killing of innocent people and destruction of villages across the country by heavily armed audacious Fulani herdsmen; the latest being the invasion of some communities in Enugu State that led to the massacre of about 50 people and burning of houses, including churches. Amidst nationwide anger and mounting criticism of his government’s alleged indifference to the carnage, the President ordered the Chief of Defence Staff, Major-Gen. Abayomi Olonishakin and the Police IG Solomon Arase, to arrest and prosecute all those involved in the savagery, which regrettably, mirrors the generalized insecurity fueled in part by the Boko Haram insurgency that has taken the country hostage. We strongly condemn these dastardly killings and if Buhari cannot rise up to his constitutional responsibility to protect the lives and property of Nigerians, he should resign. The nation must not be allowed to descend into anarchy.
Whatever is the motive of the herdsmen, it is the government’s responsibility to protect its citizens every time and in all circumstances. The manifest insincerity and lack of urgency, evident by the bureaucratic vacillation and tardy official response to the attacks on communities by herdsmen armed with sophisticated weapons, calls to question the capacity of the security agencies to contain social discontents and tame extremists who try to wedge a bar between law-abiding citizens and peace. Relevant authorities must, therefore, stamp their commanding presence in the troubled areas before the country is saddled with another conflagration, akin to the ongoing Boko Haram insurgency that has claimed over 5,000 lives since its emergence in 2009.
The palpable sense of despair is pushing Nigeria towards the precipice if insecurity, reflected in the activities of Boko Haram and the herdsmen, is not caged, Prof. Wole Soyinka, Ondo State Governor Olusegun Mimiko, South East senators and some major groups in the country warned recently. Indeed, the herdsmen and sundry militia groups, currently terrorizing the country, and responsible for the carnage in Enugu, Benue, Taraba and elsewhere, should be stopped before they get out of hand. Within a short period, a lot of atrocities have been linked to herdsmen, to the extent that a coalition of human rights groups vowed to storm Aso Rock to show their grievances against the massacres.Therecent violent and deadly attacks have prompted the question of what exactly the herdsmen want.
Back in March, aggrieved members of the Benue caucus in the House of Representatives condemned the continued massacre of the people of Benue by the herdsmen, urging the President to “act like a soldier” and halt the killings. The lawmakers berated the IGP over his unsympathetic statement that the casualty figures were blown out of proportion, noting that such remarks only served to encourage the herdsmen who, they alleged, have intensified their killing bazaar in the state. The lawmakers, who addressed a press conference at the National Assembly complex, warned that if the federal government delays in nipping the senseless killings in the bud, the people would confront their attackers frontally. They further warned that they could no longer fold their arms while their people were being killed like chickens by jihadists who camouflage as herdsmen. The lawmakers also described as despicable and unacceptable the fact that despite the outcry that trailed the killings and sacking of Agatu communities, the marauders have continued to lay siege on other local governments and killing more people.
Curiously, none of the herdsmen has been arrested or brought to justice notwithstanding the judicial enquiry into the violence raised by the government. Rather, the President’s mortifying assurance to the nation that the current homicidal escalation between the cattle prowlers and farming communities would soon be over is anything but assuring, given the belated reaction of the President and the Interior Minister, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Danbazzau (rtd) who only spoke on the massacres a week after over 500 people were killed and 10 villages razed in Agatu area of Benue state.
In the face of this “jihad” being waged against the Nigerian people, the perceived silence of the Federal authorities is too loud or rather deafening for comfort. It is not enough for the president to order the arrest and prosecution of those involved in the massacres; neither are commissions of enquiry or empty platitudes urging Nigerians to remain calm and assured of government’s readiness to deploy all required personnel and resources to remove this new threat to the collective security of the nation. Nigerians are seeking answers to questions as to why the herdsmen are so heavily armed with AK-47 assault rifles; who is arming them and where are they from? How can the public distinguish herdsmen from Boko Haram since both groups have the same tactical operation strategies?
The situation has become so baffling that the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has expressed “strong worry that going by the seeming conspiratorial silence and clear case of orchestrated ineptitude and inaction by the Federal Government of President Muhammadu Buhari to the dare-devil activities and blood-cuddling violence of armed Fulani herdsmen, Nigeria may be dangerously nearing the precipice of civil war.” In a statement, the group also warned “law enforcement agencies and the Armed Forces to rein in their errant commanders and management level officers to stop deploying armed security operatives to work in cohort with suspected armed Fulani herdsmen to create anarchy and civil unrest across Nigeria.”
The mindless violence, exemplified by the senseless murder of innocent people, especially women and children, is the most gory desecration of human lives. The killings are not only too many; the cruelty of method is increasing in alarming proportion. The Fulani herdsmen show no mercy, just as they do not discriminate on account of gender, status or age of victims. Sorrow, tears and blood are the hallmarks of their visits on innocent ones especially farming communities in the dead of night. Security officials have in all cases been left chasing shadows. This descent into bestiality must end.
Nigerians do not deserve the hellish life they are being subjected to. So, the authorities must wake up to their responsibilities and restore peace at whatever cost. Citizens must be reassured of safety in their country. Insecurity is generally rooted in the failure of intelligence at all levels. Unconventional war may be new to Nigeria, but the intelligence apparatus ought to, by now, have overcome initial setbacks and become proactive in operations to stave off senseless attacks on hapless Nigerians.
This Fulani menace must be thoroughly addressed if there would be any respite. The herdsmen and other culprits of violence must be brought to justice. But not a single one has been arrested or questioned. Such perceived timidity of the authorities can only embolden the herdsmen to more dastardly acts. To allow ethnic militancy reign unhindered is to invite anarchy upon the country. When citizens’ inalienable rights to live within the ambit of the law are threatened by outlaws and government at all levels fail in their duty to protect them from harm, what is left to live for?
