The chairman, Gwer West local government area of Benue State, Victor Ormin, has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew to curb the rising wave of insecurity in and around the council.
A statement by the special assistant to the chairman on Media and Publicity, Timothy Ajieje, explained that with the directive, the people coming into Gwer West and those going out to other places are to do so within the stipulated time of 6:30pm.
According to him, “this restriction is subject to review as the security situation improves.”
The attacks by the rampaging armed herders at the commencement of the 2025 farming season have become a daily occurrence, with the recent invasion of four local governments, where 23 farmers were reportedly killed.
Some of the farmers in Gwer- West including Imenger Fidelis, Mwuese Chia, Sedemkela Adzua who spoke to our correspondent, all lamented that after the first weed of their farms, they could not go there to plough the land because it was no go area, herders invaded and even killed some of the farmers who were still weeding theirs.
“We are helpless, we were thinking hence the government was talking about food security they would deploy security to protect farmers to enable them farm peacefully but there is nothing like that, we are still left in the hands of these killers and now it has become a daily occurrence.
“If the Government of President Bola Tinubu is talking about food security and they cannot protect farmers who are being butchered every day in their farms and houses, then the preaching about food security is lip services, we wonder what they will come and tell us during campaigns again.
“We are gradually becoming beggars because the people we have voted for have refused to protect us, we are being butchered like animals in our farms, houses, Churches, markets, we are left on our own with no hospital, no school for our children, no hope for our future,” they said.
