Posted by Chinenye on Wed 29th Jul, 2026 - tori.ng
Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has vowed to ensure those behind a deadly attack on a community in the state face justice, promising stronger efforts to protect lives and ancestral lands.
(Gov. Hyacinth Alia. Photo Credit: National Accord)
Gov. Hyacinth Alia has pledged to take all reasonable steps to guarantee the safety of the people of Benue State and the security of their land.
Alia made this statement while expressing her profound sorrow over the attack on the Efeyi community in the Ugboju District of the state's Otukpo Local Government Area by some unidentified gunmen.
Scores of residents were reportedly k!lled, while several others sustained varying degrees of injuries after att@ckers stormed the community in the early hours of Tuesday.
Governor Alia described the att@ck as unfortunate, stating that his people are peaceful and hardworking and that he was elected to protect them, adding that he would do everything legitimately possible to ensure their safety and secure their land.
According to a statement issued Tuesday in Makurdi by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Tersoo Kula, the governor vowed that those behind the att@ck would be brought to justice.
Alia further commended the Benue Police Command for its prompt response to the incident, disclosing that officers neutralised two suspected armed b@ndits believed to have taken part in the att@ck while pursuing the fleeing perpetrators.
Police operatives were said to have been deployed immediately upon receiving reports of the att@ck, engaging the fleeing suspects in a gun battle that left two dead after they allegedly provided cover for others attempting to escape.
The governor reaffirmed his administration's commitment to supporting security agencies in eliminating criminal elements and protecting lives and property across the state, warning that those seeking to displace Benue residents and seize their ancestral lands would not succeed.
He stated that Benue land belongs to Benue people, and cautioned that anyone thinking they could push residents away and take over their land should reconsider.
The att@ck comes less than a week after Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, announced a special 14-day security operation aimed at flushing out criminal elements from identified flashpoints across Benue.
Disu made the announcement last Thursday during a town hall meeting on security in Makurdi, attended by Alia, the Tor Tiv, Prof. James Ayatse, religious leaders, traditional rulers, security chiefs and other stakeholders.
The IGP described the security situation in Benue as a source of sleepless nights for both residents and security agencies, lamenting that the state, once known for peace and hospitality, had become engulfed by violence.
He noted that the crisis had evolved beyond farmer-herder clashes, with kidn@ppers, armed gangs and political interests worsening the insecurity.
Disu urged youths to resist being recruited by influential individuals to perpetrate viol3nce, particularly during elections, remarking that though youths are usually not the ones who start wars, they are often the ones who fight them, and urging parents to caution their children against being used as cannon fodder.
He condemned the cycle of att@cks and reprisals across the state, insisting it must end, and conveyed President Bola Tinubu's directive that insecurity in Benue would no longer be tolerated, warning that only authorised security personnel were permitted to bear arms.
The police chief vowed to intensify efforts to recover illegal firearms, stating that officers had been directed to act decisively in line with Force Order 237 whenever confronted by armed criminals.
He acknowledged concerns over police misconduct, admitting the force was not perfect but assuring residents that every complaint against officers would be investigated and acted upon.
Disu directed the Benue Commissioner of Police to publicly display his contact details to encourage residents to report crimes and police misconduct, stressing that effective policing could only be achieved through community partnership, adding that the police belong to the people and exist to serve, not to rule over them.
The Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of mobile police, Francis Iduh, disclosed that the force had identified 14 major security flashpoints across Benue for targeted operations, listing vulnerable areas to include Gbajimba, Agasha, Kwande, Agatu, Naka, Otukpo, Makurdi, Apa and other communities earmarked for intensive surveillance.
He explained that the planned 14-day operation would involve stability and clearance patrols aimed at reclaiming forests, farmlands and criminal hideouts, targeting armed herders, b@ndits and other criminal elements without victimising innocent residents, and noting that with credible intelligence from communities, security forces would deal with criminals without criminalising law-abiding citizens.