The Governor was reacting to recent attacks in Sankera which initially claims six lives in Ukum LGA that triggered a violent protest and another cool blooded murder of 18 in Katsina-Ala LGA as well as the viral video of bandits threatening to kill more on that axis and the move by his government to end the bloodletting.
He likened the security situation in Senkera to an octopus saying “I used that in the sense that we are talking about the composition of every frame and form of insecurity that have come up on the people of Ukum LGA.”
According to him, “during my campaign I told every faceless person in the three Senatorial zones who were creating instability in the state to sheathe their swords and that the new government was coming in to liberate them, to get them out of the bushes and stop them from killing their siblings. And that is what we have been trying to do.
“Unfortunately when the political wing of it comes into the fray it kind of complicates what had been there. For many years there had been skirmishes of instability in the Ukum area.
“And what pains me most is that the instability is never created by the invaders, it is not from the outsiders. It is the homegrown bandits who come out there to kill their fathers and mothers and their brothers and sisters, stopping them from going to farm.
“In other climes if you are talking of insecurity you are fighting those who have come from outside trying to grab land and to destabilize the lives of the people in those areas. But in Ukum LGA and Sankera axis this is a different story which is strange.
“But we cannot stop talking to them. I extended numerous olive branch to them to come out. I offered that those who would want to go to school, the state is willing to sponsor them to recreate their lives and for those of them who are trade inclined we will help them aquire better skills to earn them good living.
“So that we will help them fund the businesses they seek after acquiring the skills. By so doing it will encourage them to come out of the bushes and stop destabilising the Local Governments and killing their own people.
“Unfortunately, even those who were like inclined to coming out were being attacked in the fight for superiority right there in the bushes. My anxiety and the deeper wounds I feel on this is that the so called Abuja politicians are the ones sponsoring and supporting these young men.”
The Governor noted that after the Ukum violent protest “the very first thing we did was to set up a Judicial Panel of Inquiry. And it is already at work. So there is no need preempting anything yet. Once they comb and bring out all the facts, then we move from there. But as for the people, they have been watertight secured as I am speaking”.
The Governor who did not rule out the offer of amnesty to the bandits said “trying to gauge in an option of amnesty is not a bad idea, but here is the thing, their trust had been betrayed. And they are so conscious of that.
“We are speaking about faceless people out there. And the only way they hear my messages is when I speak to you the media. So it will be premature to say amnesty, so come out. The previous administration attempted it and they felt so brutalised because their leader was exterminated and they are conscious of that.
“So when you see them reacting and fighting back and you try to get to the root causes of all these it is not distant from the betrayal the government did to them. And they tell you that you are part of the government since government is a continum.
“So they need to understand that Benue is a very peaceful place and we need to go back to the old Benue we knew where we all slept with our two years closed on the axis of Sankera where we have roots of money under the ground so that we can revitalise their economy and businesses.
“We will continue to persuade them to come out but at the same time I would not let the evil miscreants destabilize the peace of the entire place. Once the Panel of Inquiry present their report we will be taking it from their.
Once they spring up with the perpetrators and sponsors we wouldn’t hide their names irrespective of their social standing and political wings. And we will have to expose them because we need peace.”