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By Correspondent in Abuja.
Legal practitioners under the auspices of the Association of Idoma Lawyers (Owa Ka’Okepo Ki’Idoma) have called on the United States of America and the State of Israel to extend their military intervention to communities in Benue South Senatorial District, following what they described as incessant terrorist attacks and killings in the area.
The call was made in a statement jointly signed by the Leader of the association, Chief Godwin Obla, SAN, and its President, Dr. Joshua Musa, SAN, and made available to journalists in Abuja on Friday.
The lawyers condemned, in strong terms, the recent attack on Akpa-Otobi Community in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State by persons suspected to be armed herders, which reportedly led to the death of about four persons.
They recalled that those killed include Mr. Igbabe Ochi, a former House of Assembly candidate for the Otukpo-Akpa State Constituency during the 2019 general election. They said the attack occurred at about 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, following a failed kidnap attempt in the community on Sunday night.
Reacting to the incident, the association said the persistent violent attacks by armed herdsmen on innocent residents of Otukpo, Ohimini, Apa and Agatu Local Government Areas should be of utmost concern to both the Benue State and Federal Governments.
According to the lawyers, security agencies must rise to the occasion with the same renewed momentum being deployed against terrorists in other parts of the country.
“The criminal determination by these terrorists to displace our people from their ancestral homes is wicked, dehumanising and unacceptable,” the lawyers said.
They lamented that crops and economic trees worth hundreds of millions of naira were being destroyed, while helpless residents lacked the capacity to confront the violent attackers.
“The constitutional rights of our people to their farmlands are being serially violated as if the Constitution no longer applies to Idoma land. The right to own property is guaranteed under Section 43 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), yet it is being destroyed with impunity,” they added.
The association further noted that the economic, social and cultural lives of the people had been severely diminished, adding that their right to life was neither respected by the attackers nor adequately protected by the state.
Describing the situation as most unfortunate, the lawyers stressed that the laws of all civilised nations protect the lives and property of citizens and impose strict punishment on criminals.
“Nigeria, having portrayed itself as a civilised nation, must urgently enforce its Constitution, penal laws and security policies to defend Idoma land and its peaceful, law-abiding people,” the lawyers noted.
They warned that the continued attacks could force residents into desperate measures. “Our people have been pushed to the wall, and if help does not come from any quarter, they may be compelled to resort to self-defence with sticks and stones,” they added.
The lawyers described the losses suffered by farmers and residents of Benue South Senatorial District as monumental and called on relevant federal agencies to assess the damage and adequately compensate victims.
The association said it was aware that military intervention by the United States had brought relief to several communities in Nigeria’s North-West and North-East, adfing that Israel had also volunteered to assist Nigeria in the fight against terrorism.
They recalled that the crisis began in Agatu Local Government Area, where tens of thousands of people had allegedly lost their lives over the years with little media attention.
“To date, no community in Nigeria has suffered what the Idoma people of Agatu have endured,ranging from killings, rape and arson to poisoning of streams, destruction of aquatic life, crops and economic trees,” according to the lawyers.
Describing these acts as inhuman and dastardly, the lawyers said they had been largely underreported.
According to them, the military intervention being sought forBenue South Senatorial District will secure the land, protect lives and property, and uphold the dignity of the human person.
Emphasising their constitutional rights, the lawyers said,“We have a right to life as guaranteed by Section 33 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). Our lives matter.”
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
