Ortom Restates Call On Security Agencies To End Killings

Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, has restated his call on security agencies to take proactive measures to stop further killings in the state.

    This call came on the heels of reports of renewed armed herdsmen attacks and killings in several local government areas including Guma, Logo, Kwande, Gwer West and Agatu.

     The most recent and devastating of these attacks took place in Gwer West last week where more than 10 people lost their lives.

    He condemned the fresh attacks on the people of the state and elsewhere in the country and described them as barbaric, inhuman and unacceptable.

   The governor appealed to individuals, groups and communities to assist the law enforcement agencies with information and other lawful support that would enable them perform their duty of protecting lives and property of citizens by acting promptly on security reports and threats to peace.

The governor, who emphasised that the state was not at war with any ethnic group and that no one should make inciting statements or resort to attacks against any group called on the people not to condone or encourage acts of criminality from criminal element to perpetrate crimes, pointing out that the security agencies have been directed and supported to curb such activities and anyone found culpable would not be spared.

   Governor Ortom averred that the state government would not allow the security situation in the state to degenerate into a resort to self-help as that would precipitate anarchy.

He commended the efforts of the security agencies in the state whose members have paid the supreme price and called for more deployments to the flashpoints in order to enhance their operations.

The governor said new attacks have engendered new humanitarian crises and calls for more assistance from the federal government, the international community, public spirited individuals, organizations as well as other corporate bodies to tackle the challenges.