By Suleiman Anyalewechi
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN, has strongly rejected claims linking it to the attack and killings in parts of Otukpo Local Council of Benue State.
The source reports that suspected armed herdsmen were alleged to have launched multiple attacks on the twin communities of Akpachi-Ugboju and Otukpo-Nobi between late Saturday night and early Sunday morning, killed no fewer than 10 persons, injured several others, and displaced many residents.
Hundreds of enraged residents who staged a protest match to the Palace of the Idoma traditional ruler ,the Och’Idoma His Royal Majesty Dr John Odogbo Eliagwu, pointedly blamed the development on suspected armed herdsmen.
The Benue State Governor, Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, in a statement from Tersoo Kula, his spokesperson, while condemning the killings, also accused armed herdsmen of being behind the unfortunate incident.
However, in a statement from its Secretary Ibrahim Galma, the Benue State Chapter of MACBAN, while condemning the attack and killings, also called for an inquest to unravel the actual circumstances surrounding the development.
The MACBAN, while distancing its members from the killings, rejected the tendency to link Fulani herdsmen to the incident even when investigations have not been concluded.
The statement emphasized that there has been no presence of Fulani in Otukpo and environs since 2025 when they were all asked to leave.
It highlighted the festering communal feuds and clashes that have, for long, defined the relationship among some Otukpo Communities as possible cause(s) of the recent attack and killings.
“It is important for the public to note that all Fulani residents in Otukpo and its environs were forcefully evicted from the area sometime last year.
“This included their community leaders in Otukpo, Chairman Yenusa, who left the State immediately after all efforts to restore peace in Otukpo failed.
“Secondly, it has come to our notice that Otukpo-Nobi and other communities in the same area such as Okete ,Amla-Icho ,and Otada already have pending communal clashes”, the MACBAN stated.
It cautioned against claims suggesting that the development was a reprisal attack over the killing of its Benue State Chairman ,Ardo Risku Mohammad.
According to MACBAN, indulging in such a conclusion is not only hasty, but prejudicial to the ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding the killings of the MACBAN leader.
However, the Benue State Government strongly believes that the perpetrators of the gruesome killings may have come from neighbouring States.
Governor Alia, while describing the attack and killings as a direct assault on the fragile peace and stability of the State, directed Security Agencies to collaborate with their colleagues in neighbouring States with a view to fishing out the masterminds of the attack and killings.
Discover more from The Source
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
