Friday 18 March 2016

Agatu Crisis: Benue Lawmakers Blast Buhari & Danbazzau

Some members of the Benue parliamentary caucus in the House of Representatives have raised alarm over bloody attacks of Fulani herdsmen and strongly criticized President Muhammadu Buhari for downplaying the “genocide” happening to the Agatu people in the state. Vanguard reports that 11 lawmakers condemned Buhari and Abdulrahman Danbazzau, the minister of interior, while briefing journalists on Thursday, March 17.
“A genocide that typical of the Nigerian state has been downplayed or ignored until it spirals out of control. After the Agatu mass massacre, a few headlines were recorded, a few sympathetic comments in high places but concrete moves to stop the killings have not been made.
“We decry the lukewarm attitude of the federal government towards this ‘jihad’ being waged against our people by the herdsmen. We condemn the belated reaction of President Muhammadu Buhari and his minister of interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Danbazzau (rtd) who broke their unholy silence a week after over 500 people were killed and 10 villages razed in Agatu area of the state,” they said.
The lawmakers wondered why the federal government has not made public the report of the investigative panel and has not inaugurated it in the first instance. They lamented that every planting season is heralded by serial attacks by Fulani herdsmen who also return during the harvesting season.
Earlier this week, Dambazau promised to deal decisively with the perpetrators of the killings in Agatu community. He also ordered the inspector general of police, Solomon Arase, to carry out an on-the-spot assessment of the situation in the communities.

Meanwhile, Senator David Mark visited some parts of Benue state in the aftermath of the Agatu killings. He called on local people to refrain from any form of reprisal attack on herdsmen in any part of Benue south district to prevent an escalation of the crisis between Fulani herdsmen and Agatu farmers. He also urged the state and federal governments to intervene by rebuilding the war ravaged communities as well as rehabilitating the survivors to resume their routine farming business.

Source: Naija.com

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