President of the Benue Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (BECIMA), Dr Paul Ubwa, Sunday said the attacks on the farming communities at the onset of the cropping season in Benue state were premeditated attempt by the attackers to discourage farmers from working on their farmlands.
Ubwa equally said the attack if not promptly curbed would destroy agriculture which is the mainstay of the state economy.
In a statement issued on Sunday in Makurdi, Dr Ubwa lamented that the killings in the state had become a recurring decimal, with the security forces seemingly helpless and incapable of forestalling what he described as “wanton and totally unnecessary aggression on innocent civilians.”
He called on the security forces to leave no stone unturned in unearthing the identity of the perpetrators of the heinous crime so as to bring them to justice.
Dr Ubwa appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari and the command structure of the Nigerian Armed Forces to expedite action in bringing to book the alleged herdsmen invasion and their sponsors.
Ubwa, who is the MD/CEO Ugbechi Group, called on all citizens of the state, regardless of political affiliation to close ranks in support of the Governor to tackle the myriad security issues confronting the State.
He commended Governor Samuel Ortom for timely response at the onset of the incident and urged him not to relent in his sterling efforts to defend the people of Benue State.
He commiserated with the Benue state government and the good people of state state on the senseless murder of seven inhabitants of the IDPs Camp at Abagena in Makurdi LG, with many others injured by the suspected herdsmen militia.
