The Middle Belt Journalists Forum (MBJF) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to prevail on the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, the Service Chiefs, and the top echelon of the security and defence formations in the country, to save the people of the Middle Belt region from the frequent deadly attacks by unknown gunmen, who have laid siege on several communities in the region.
The appeal is contained in a statement by jointly signed by the President and Secretary of MBJF, Mr. Mark Mayah, and Mrs. Ladi Emmanuel, and made available to ASHENEWS on Thursday.
The Forum said the killings by suspected armed men in the region had assumed a monumental proportion, and described the resurgence of violence as tragic.
The statement stressed that those responsible for the attacks and killings should be arrested and prosecuted.
“The region which seems to be the sole target for these genocidal attacks has remained under the stranglehold of the killers for over two decades.
“The most recent of this genocide was the reoccurring maiming and killing of several people and burning of several properties, including the local government secretariat on Wednesday afternoon in Borikyo of the Ukum local government area of Benue state by unknown armed men,” the Forum stated.
The Forum frowned at the spate of killings in the zone, noting that governments at federal and state level were not doing enough to stem the menace.
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The statement also called for the proper levelling of what is happening in the region in terms of human carnage and that the current classification of the catastrophy as “farmers/herdsmen conflict” is very wrong; adding, “It’s simply a genocide, and there is the need to change the narrative in the media.
“The situation where hapless natives are murdered in cold blood on their ancestral home cannot be described as a farmers-herders crisis.
“The Forum is calling on the Federal government to do all that is required to save the region from the current systematic genocide.
“The life of every Nigerian is sacred and important and it is the responsibility of the federal government to protect the masses against internal and external aggression. It is high time the authority sit-up to its primary responsibility of securing the federation.
“We are also appealing to the Inspector General of Police, all the Service Chiefs and the National Security Adviser to swiftly intervene and thoroughly investigate the cause of the persistent killings. We seek humanitarian assistance for those displaced by the conflict.
“We share in the grief of the families of those that lost their lives in the unfortunate incidents and call on the people to be steadfast and cooperate with the men of our security forces for the restoration of lasting peace”, the statement reads.
