Cheke Emmanuel 
Background
Reports across the North West, North East and North Central statés indicate that the resurgence of insecurity ranging from Boko Haram activities, Islamic State of Sahel (Lukurawa), suspected armed herdsmen to kidnapping and other forms of killings have again, thrown the region back to its dark days of bloodbath and death zones, making life short and brutish while the people and visitors to the regions are gripped with fears daily.
Resurgence of Boko Haram attacks in Borno State and the recent bomb attack on military base where scores of soldiers and civilians were reportedly killed have heightened tension and raised questions over public safety.
The recent bandit attacks in Katsina, Yobe, Adamawa, Plateau, Benue, Niger, and Kwara states where many innocent lives were lost and property destroyed is still fresh in the minds of Nigerians.
The North Central states, which is worse hit by the renewed attacks by bandits and suspected armed herdsmen, with innocent blood flowing from Plateau, Nasarawa to Benue and Kwara states unabated despite President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s fresh directives to security and intelligence chiefs to end the killings have further raised questions as to when the violent surge will come to an end in parts of the country.
Benue
In Benue State, one attack in Logo and Ukum local government areas by suspected armed herdsmen claimed 55 lives and property worth millions of naira destroyed.
The attack on Mbasombo community in Gwer Local Government Area of the state left 15 people dead, with several others injured.
The Otobi-Akpa attack in Otukpo LGA also in Benue State where 15 persons were killed, with scores injured was described as one of the coordinated attacks in the state in recent times, after Logo and Ukum incidents respectively.
The attacks in Logo and Ukum LGA had forced the state Governor Hyacinth Alia, who led other top government functionaries and security agencies, on the spot assessment visit to the areas, described the attacks as horrific and genocidal, saying the attackers are not Nigerians as they speak different language.
Giving a breakdown of the massacre, the governor said a total of 27 bodies were recovered from Logo Local Government Area while 28 others were recovered in Ukum Local Government Area, with five corpses initially recovered at Gbagir.
Plateau
In Plateau State, the attack on Hurti in Bokkos were 40 people were killed and the ones on Zike and Kimakpa communities in Bassa where 50 people were killed, was described as genocidal and massacre as well as forceful ejection of the owners of the land by Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Platuea State.
The Riyom attacks is also fresh. Kwara In Kwara State, the terror attack on Ilesha Baruba in the Baruten Local Government Area and Kalama communities, also left many lives dead giving the frequency of the attacks.
Niger
While in Niger State, the renewed attacks in some parts of the state and the number of casualties took its toll on several communities across the state, leading to imposition of curfew by the state government in some local government areas.
To stem the tide of attacks, the state government has presently ban operation of motorcycles and tricycles in the state capital, Minna.
Nasarawa
Nasarawa State, which had enjoyed some kind of relative peace in recent times, is not also spare from the raging attacks, as it was hit by resurgence of terror attacks ranging from banditry, suspected armed herdsmen attacks to kidnapping witnessed in some local government areas of the state.
This is as the Tatara, Farin Dutse, Doka and Panda attacks as well as Keana killings in Keana, Doma, Akwanga and Nasarawa local government areas, where scores were killed, had robbed the state of Solid Minerals of its peaceful ambiance.
Besides, the pockets of terror attacks in Nasarawa State is mostly that of kidnapping and armed robbery and herdsmen attacks.
Cry for help
The current wave of insecurity in the state has forced Mdzough u Tiv, the apex socio-cultural group of the Tiv people in Nasarawa State, crying for help, alleging that over 10, 000 of their kinsmen, mostly farmers, have been displaced in parts of Keana and Doma local government areas of the state.
The Chairman of the group, Philip Nongo, who addressed reporters in Kadarko, where about 3, 000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) are currently taking refuge, said the current wave of displacement was as a result of the attacks in Benue State.
He said, “We thought the crises was in Benue State, and it will not affect our people here. Unknowingly, three days back, they (suspected herders), came around Doka area in a village called Mgbata, where they set one church ablaze, and also burnt one house.
‘‘They proceeded to the village of Tsekre where they also set a house ablaze. Before we knew, our people discovered that there are some bandits, suspected to be herdsmen, with sophisticated weapons, moving around, intimidating our people and chasing them out of their ancestral villages and farmlands.
‘‘Telling them that if they farm there, it is a waste and that if they prefer farming to their lives, then they should stay there. So, because of that and because there is no security, our people, over 10,000 people were displaced.”
Nongo, who conducted journalists round some of the compounds, open spaces and the Kadarko North Primary School where the displaced victims are sheltering, said the spillover of the crises in Benue State caused the present rounds of forced displacement in Doma and Keana LGAs, thus necessitating the victims to move to areas like Kadarko, Agyaragau and Lafia metropolis.
The displacement if farmers coming barely weeks when Association of Farmers in the Benue Valley had raised the alarm over the presence of Lukurawa group in Akanga forest and increasing activities of the murderous armed herdsmen in the Benue valley, Chairman of the body, Denis Utsa, had alleged.
Pained by the persistent killings in Benue State, the Universal Reformed Church of Christ (URCC), popularly known as the NKST in Benue State, has claimed that it lost over 100 members of the church to armed herdsmen terrorists’ attacks during this year’s Easter celebration in the state.
President of the NKST, Rev. Ambassador Nendaga Asongo Adure, disclosed this at a news conference at the institution’s headquarters in Gboko.
He said verified reports from local pastors working from other church networks in the affected communities revealed that over 300 people were gruesomely murdered in one attack on “Good Friday.’’
Stressing that, “since January of this year alone, more than 600 people have lost their lives in fresh waves of violence, particularly in Guma, Logo, Ukum, Katsina-Ala, Kwande and Otukpo LGAs.
“The humanitarian department of the NKST Church has reached out to these camps with a lot of food stuff to the affected persons, covering 34 classes, which represents over 204 organised local consistories, to cushion the effect of their suffering.
“Over the last years, more than 247 organized NKST churches have been attacked or forcibly shut down due to insecurity in Benue State. Several Reverends, Pastors and members have been kidnapped, tortured, and in some cases, killed in cold blood.
The Christian community, which has for generations been the moral compass and pillar of peace in this nation, is being bruised and broken.
“The church leadership expresses its anger and profound disappointment at the failure of humanity. The closure of churches is not only a blow to faith but to the spirit and resilience of the people who rely on their church communities for support, guidance, and hope”.
Rev. Adure decried the general security situation bedeviling the state and country, which has ushered in hardship and social fragmentation, urging the federal government to declare a state of emergency on security in the state by mobilising full military and intelligence support to secure the state and root out the perpetrators of violence.
Also, worried by the surge of violent incidents including banditry, armed herdsmen arracks, and kidnapping in Plateau, Benue and Kaduna states as well as in other parts of the country, the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) said it has expensed N300m in payment of ransom of its members kidnapped by criminal elements, with over 50 individuals still be held in captivity by kidnappers.
Further, “I urge you to ensure that none of those arrested are released until they are properly investigated and prosecuted so that we don’t continue to see such bad eggs on the streets.
“I also recall the reported cases of gun runners in Awe, Doma, Keana, as well as Nasarawa local government area, and the amount of efforts put in leading to the arrest of some of the perpetrators.”
Calls for concerted efforts
The ECWA General Secretary, Rev. Ayuba Asheneshe disclosed this when addressing journalists in Jos at the ECWA recently. He called for urgent and decisive action from the government and all stakeholders to address these interconnected insecurity challenges.
He said “The church has already expended over 300 million naira in ransom payments, yet over 50 individuals remain in captivity, placing an unbearable financial strain on the church and affected families, many of whom have lost their livelihoods.
The targeting of predominantly farming communities in the region further exacerbates the crisis, and causing more serious concerned.
He said in Plateau State that ECWA recorded two recent attacks: One on Hurti Village in Bokkos LGA, where 40 people, including two pastors, were murdered, and another on Zike and Kimakpa Communities in Bassa LGA, where 50 individuals were killed.
The church views these attacks as part of a systematic campaign of terror against predominantly Christian communities.
According to the church, “These attacks are viewed as part of a systematic campaign of terror against predominantly Christian communities who have long been marginalized and left vulnerable.
“We call for a concerted effort to develop and implement effective strategies to combat banditry, kidnapping, and militia attacks, and to restore peace and security to our rural areas.’’
