Blood On Benue Soil: Gov. Alia Must Go Beyond Issuing Press Statements -By Isaac Asabor

Once again, the fertile soils of Benue State have been stained with the blood of its own people. Over 200 people in the state, mostly farmers and rural dwellers, were gruesomely killed in cold blood in what can only be described as a Gestapo-style operation, swift, brutal, and merciless. The images are heart-wrenching, the statistics damning, and the collective silence from those in authority; both at the state and federal levels is deafening in its inadequacy.

This is not the time for condolence statements. It is not the time for another routine “We condemn this act” press release. This is a time for leadership, courageous, proactive, and constitutionally grounded leadership. Governor Alia must be reminded, in no uncertain terms, that the Nigerian Constitution does not merely give him the power to lead; it gives him the mandate to protect.

Article 14(2) (b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) is crystal clear: “The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.” This is not a suggestion. It is a constitutional directive and mandate.

Since assuming office, Governor Alia, a former Catholic priest, has made headlines for his homilies, not for decisive actions on security. While it is commendable that he often speaks with a moral compass and issues press statements to condemn acts of violence, the unfortunate reality is that these words have not translated into any meaningful protection for the Benue people.

What can protect the people of Benue right now is not rhetoric but decisive and strategic action. Among the immediate steps Governor Alia can take as gathered from virtual space by this writer are strengthening local vigilante groups, establishing emergency response teams in vulnerable LGAs and setting up a security intelligence task Force. Other steps are that of establishing emergency response teams in vulnerable LGAs.

Explanatorily put, when vigilante groups are properly trained and equipped, they will no doubt serve as first responders in rural areas that security agencies often overlook. Given the foregoing view, Governor Alia and his administration must provide them with legitimate backing, coordination, and logistics.

Concerning the establishment of emergency response teams in vulnerable LGAs, these mobile units should be equipped with surveillance technology (drones), rapid communication tools, and armed personnel to act on real-time intelligence.

As for setting up a security intelligence task force, this would enable a more robust collection of early warning signals and threats across communities, especially in border areas vulnerable to armed herders and militias. In fact, Words do not shield bullets. Press statements do not prevent machetes. Condolences do not replace lives. In fact, Benue cannot continue to be Nigeria’s Killing Field

Benue State has become a recurring decimal in Nigeria’s tragic litany of violence. From Guma to Logo, from Agatu to Makurdi, the stories are always the same, heavily armed assailants, mostly unidentified, storm villages at night, slaughter men, women, and children, raze homes, and vanish before sunrise. The state has been described as the “food basket of the nation,” yet the hands that till its soil are being hacked off, and the mouths that feed the nation are being silenced.

When over 200 people are murdered and the only thing the government does is issue a statement, it tells the world that Benue lives do not matter, not to the state, and certainly not to Abuja.

At this juncture, not a few readers of this piece may have asked, “Where will the money come from?” This is as one of the most common excuses for state inaction is limited funding. But it is precisely at times like this that leaders must think outside the box. “So how can Governor Alia increase security funding?”

Against the backdrop of the foregoing, it is not out of place to opine that the governor can reprioritize the state budget. In fact, he must immediately reorder spending priorities by slashing non-essential budget lines, such as luxury vehicles, travel allowances, and bloated administrative costs, and redirect funds into community policing and logistics.

Again, the governor must explore Public-Private Security Partnerships (PPSPs). There are individuals and corporations in Benue who are stakeholders in peace and would be willing to support initiatives that secure lives and property. He must establish transparent platforms for such collaborations.

In a similar vein, the governor should maximize his power and privileges to access national and international security grants. This is as there are federal funds, UN-supported grants, and regional security cooperation programs specifically designed for states under siege. The governor must not sit back and expect manna from Abuja. He must knock on every door until it opens.

In fact, he must hold local government chairmen accountable for security votes, each local government in Nigeria receives monthly funds, including security votes. Alia must institute an audit and performance measure for these funds to ensure they are being used for tangible protection.

Given the fact that leadership demands more than sympathy, Governor Alia must understand that he was not elected to merely empathize with the people; he was elected to defend them. The oath of office he swore on May 29, 2023, was not an oath of comfort, but of responsibility. In his oath, he pledged to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.” This is not a symbolic gesture; it is a binding commitment. He must now start living up to that oath.

Across Nigeria, governors have faced violent threats and shown what political will and creativity can achieve. Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State refused to hide behind security excuses. He personally visited war-torn areas, empowered local hunters, and lobbied Abuja for real-time military deployment. His boldness earned him the people’s trust, and results.

Late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State championed Amotekun, the South-West security outfit. He didn’t wait for the federal government. He did not cower to pressure. He led a legal and operational charge to protect his people.

Governor Samuel Ortom, Alia’s predecessor, for all his flaws, was unapologetically outspoken. He called out the federal government, demanded justice at global forums, and passed the anti-open grazing law that became a rallying point in defense of Benue.

Governor Alia must now craft his own legacy in this same manner, not with platitudes, but with policy. In fact, governorship is not a priestly calling where one offers prayers and sacraments. It is a secular office with binding duties. The blood of the innocent is crying from the soil of Benue. Their cries are louder than any statement from the Commissioner of Information. Their tears have soaked the land beyond redemption.

History will not be kind to leaders who watched their people die and did nothing but speak. Every name on the voter register that put Hyacinth Alia in office is tied to an expectation, the expectation that he will fight, protect, and preserve Benue.

He still has time to act, but the window is narrowing. If this trend of mass killings continues under his watch and his only response is another visit to an IDP camp or a press release, then he too will be seen as complicit — not by participation, but by negligence.

Without a doubt, this is a watershed moment in Governor Alia’s administration. He can either rise as the protector of his people or fall as another politician who talked more than he acted. His mandate is sacred. His responsibility is non-negotiable. His inaction, or worse, his complacency, would be an unforgivable betrayal.

Establish local security networks. Reorient the budget. Pressure Abuja. Audit local councils. Tap into private funding. Show up physically at flashpoints. These are not optional moves, they are moral obligations.

In fact, the time for press statements is over. The people of Benue do not need sympathy. They need security. They do not need pity. They need protection. They do not need a governor who talks. They need one who fights, for them.

Governor Hyacinth Alia, it is time to lead. Or be remembered as the man who watched as Benue bleeds.