Okpokwu Killing: I Never Backed Herdsmen Against My People, Senator Moro Cries Out
- A lawmaker of the Ninth Senate has denied pitching his people against some suspected 'killer' herdsmen in Benue state
- Senator Abba Moro said the only justice for the people of Okpokwu local government area is the apprehension of the attackers who killed several people in the community
- According to Moro, residents of his senatorial district cannot continue to live in fear and at the mercy of their attackers
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The senator representing Benue South senatorial district, Abba Moro, has described the attack on the Igama community, in Okpokwu LGA, which led to the killing of many as unacceptable.
Moro while calling on relevant security agencies to ensure that the killers and all those who had a hand in the attack are apprehended said the people of Benue state cannot continue to live at the mercy of these attackers.
Source: UGC
Speaking during a visit to the displaced residents of the Okpokwu community temporarily camped at Ojapo, the lawmaker said nothing short of arrest and prosecution of the criminals who, according to him, have no value for human lives, would be accepted.
Some gunmen suspected to be herdsmen had launched attacks on the Igama community, killing over 11 persons.
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According to reports, many others were still missing following the attack by the suspected herdsmen.
In a statement seen by Legit.ng, the new media aide to the lawmaker, Emmanuel Eche-Ofun also cleared the air on the comment attributed to Moro made during the visit.
Residents advised never to take law into their hands
Moro had warned his kinsmen, especially the youths against taking laws into their hands, a statement which Eche-Ofun said was misinterpreted by some enemies of the senatorial district.
The statement read in part:
“The attention of the Senator representing Benue South senatorial district, Comrade Abba Moro, has been drawn to a distorted narrative being given to a video in which he was seen talking to his kinsmen in vernacular.
“The Senator was addressing his Constituents when he visited communities in Okpokwu LGA affected by the latest attack by marauding herdsmen to identify with the people."
"In the video, he was seen telling community elders to discourage their children from taking laws into their hands by 'touching' Fulani herdsmen or their property under any guise to warrant attack, an advice that has been taken out of context and being misinterpreted by mischief makers to mean that he was 'defending' the killer herdsmen."
Eche-Ofun added that the office of the lawmaker would have ignored the malicious misinterpretation of Moro's comment but this disclaimer has become necessary to set the records straight and put a lie to what the purveyors of the falsehood intend to achieve.
He confirmed that at no point during his visit did the lawmaker defend the killer herdsmen against his own people.
He noted that Moro was only so pained by the wanton destruction of lives and properties of his people and what possibly necessitated the unfortunate attack.
According to Eche-Ofun, as the first person who strongly condemned the attack and called for the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators, Moro was alarmed at the quantum of destruction and became emotional.
His words:
"For the record, Senator Moro, since the incident happened on Sunday, has been up and doing to alleviate the pains of those affected and displaced, and strengthen security.
"On Wednesday, moved a motion on the floor of the Senate to alert the Senate on the security situation in Benue South and seek urgent intervention."
"A man who supports killers of his people or justifies their barbaric acts, as being peddled by enemies, won't go this far."
He further called on stakeholders in the senatorial district irrespective of party and ideological differences to join hands and put to an end the menace of killer herdsmen in the state.
Governor Ortom meets UK parliament delegation, reports Buhari, FG
Members of the United Kingdom parliament had been urged to prevail on the Nigerian government to bring an end to the incessant killings by herdsmen in Benue state.
The call was made by the governor of the state, Samuel Ortom when a delegation from the parliament visited him in Abuja, Nigeria's capital territory.
Ortom informed the delegation that for such killings and displacement of residents to end, the Nigerian government must treat the issue rightly without religious or ethnic bias.
Governor Ortom breathes fire, says decisive action will be taken against invaders in Benue
Herdsmen in Benue state had received what appears to be a final warning by the governor, Samuel Ortom.
Ortom said the state government would not tolerate any more attacks or invasions by herdsmen against residents of Benue.
According to the governor, over 20 people have been killed in attacks by herders within the past two weeks in Benue state.
Source: Legit.ng
