Benue state governor Samuel Ortom has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to declare Fulani herdsmen in the state as terrorists.
He made the request in the wake of the invasion and killings in several parts of the state in recent times.
The governor, through a statement issued by his spokesperson Terver Akase, noted that since the state government has a law that prohibits open grazing of livestock, violating it as the herdsmen have done since 2017 is an act of terrorism.
Mr. Ortom said that declaring the armed herders operating in the “state as terrorists will end the wave of impunity and guarantee the rule of law.”
Governor Ortom, therefore, called on people of the state, particularly those living in the affected areas to report any suspicious persons to security agencies.
He, however, commended officers and men of Operation Whirl Stroke for their prompt responses to distress calls, particularly that of yesterday when the people of Tse-Chembe came under herdsmen’s attacks.
Ortom also reassured the people that his administration will not surrender the state to criminal elements, be they herdsmen or any other group, saying that no amount of threats and attacks will stop the enforcement of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law of the State.
