The Benue dynamites – Frank Ofili

Dynamite comes in small packages. Small small packages of it are currently arriving Benue State with what seems like reprisal killing that has just taken place in that state. Only last month, 73 lives were dispatched to early grave in herdsmen attack.

So far, I am not impressed with Government handling of the killings. The Inspector General Police gave a lame excuse why he cannot arrest the herdsmen who carried out the attack. And Mr. President leaves him intact in his job. Horrible!

Meanwhile, in nearby Taraba State another attack reportedly happened on Thursday after a notice of it was given to authorities in that State. Everywhere in the country, illegal arms are ruling the nation. And they are being deployed too on harmless Nigerians.

Mass killing is bad enough, reprisal killing is worse. It is a call to war, to anarchy, to genocide!

President Buhari must arrest this trend NOW. Left to me, he should seek the National Assembly’s approval to declare a state of emergency in Benue State. Yes, let Benue State be used to signpost what would happen anywhere in the country there is herdsmen attack henceforth.

Yes, it has come to that. It seems to me some of these attacks are sponsored to give the government a bad name and thus make it in-electable in 2019. President Buhari must wise up. Sometimes delay is truly dangerous.

Yes, the Army (not the Police) must be ordered to arrest the sponsors and perpetrators of these attacks and the earlier one in which 73 people were killed, lock them up and throw away the keys while investigation goes on.

Yes, arrest first, investigate later and then prosecute and make sure they are jailed or given to the hangman – if our laws still allow it.

There must be a measure of ruthlessness in tackling these violent incidents everywhere. There must be consequence; there must be deterrence, otherwise it is Rwanda of the 1990s brewing. President Buhari must be ruthless in bringing these attacks under control