Benue Killings: I will not advocate self-defense – Gov Alia

Benue State Governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, has dismissed growing calls for residents of the state to arm themselves in response to the relentless attacks that have claimed hundreds of lives.

Speaking during an interview with AIT on Monday, June 17, the governor maintained that encouraging self-defence would only make residents more vulnerable.

“I think we would be rendering ourselves even more vulnerable. So, I wouldn’t advocate for self-defence,” Alia stated. Instead, he called for the establishment of effective community policing, arguing that only security agents familiar with local terrains and dynamics could properly address the crisis.

Alia’s comments follow public demands by some concerned groups and individuals for residents to take up arms after a series of bloody attacks in Guma, Makurdi, and other parts of the state left scores dead and communities in ruins.

When asked if the ongoing violence could be described as genocide or ethnic cleansing, the governor carefully responded, saying, “Genocide… I am trying to fit in the parameters of the description. This is what is happening to us. When a number of local government areas are being attacked on different fronts, if genocide fits this description of mine, then that would be it.”

He acknowledged that while several tribes in the state have come under attack, the majority of the violence seems targeted at Tiv communities, particularly those occupying the vast agricultural belts regarded as the state’s food basket.

Alia explained that the attackers appear to be focused on causing destruction and destabilizing farming communities, without regard for the lives of market women, children, elderly persons, or even school pupils in their path.

He concluded by reiterating that the situation requires urgent security reforms, especially in the area of state policing, stressing that indigenes would better understand their security challenges and respond appropriately.