Cross River/Benue Border Crisis Rages As 80-Year-Old, Grand Children Killed

The border crisis that broke out in September that killed dozens in Ijiegu-Yache and Gbaya in Cross River and Benue states resumed on Thursday with an unspecified number of people killed.

The latest round of the crisis started on Thursday according to community leaders and has killed an 80-year-old alongside two of his grandchildren on the Ijiegu side.

In a message sent to THE WHISTLER, a Youth Leader, Augustine Adula, blamed the military personnel sent to keep the peace for failing to control the frequent Benue militia incursion into Ijiegu land.

According to him, the soldiers deployed to the crisis zone in Ijiegu land aided the militia in their attack which has claimed an unspecified number of people and has left many injured.

He told this paper that, “The border community of Ijiegu-Yache in Yala LGA continues to suffer untold hardship as the people keep counting casualties, some dead, others injured and properties being destroyed.

“The Cross River State and Benue State Governments have continued to act like toothless bulldogs, allowing her citizens to die in a crisis the government should have put an end to between the Tiv Settlers from Benue State and their host community of Ijiegu-Yache, in Yala, Cross River State.

“The latest attack resumed on Thursday when the Tiv people accompanied by the military successfully penetrated Ijiegu and shot people who went to farm.

“It resulted in the gruesome killing of an indigene of Ijiegu called Ayeku Godwin Ochuole while other nine persons have suffered various degrees of bullet wounds and some abducted and their whereabouts unknown.”

He recalled that in September, “The people of Ijiegu suffered a ferocious attack by Tiv militia in full military kits who killed promising children, women and children and wounded so many, burnt houses and destroyed properties worth millions of Naira.

“Worse still, two days later, the military in Benue State shot and killed one person from Ijiegu.

“The people of Ijiegu community are seriously decrying the continuous killing of their loved ones by the Military in Benue State.

“They suspect that the Military is conniving with Tivs otherwise why would they allow them to frequently invade and attack their people with sophisticated weapons when they are supposedly stationed in the boundary to prevent their entry into Cross River State?

“On the contrary, they claimed that last month when the Tivs attacked, the Army in the Community only chased them away and never did any harm to them even at close range.

“Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army and other security agencies stationed at the community to avert further attacks refused to respond to the onslaught against the Ijiegu Community.

“They often threaten to leave on the ground that their allowance for their duty in the area has not been paid by the Government of Cross River State.

“So, they claim they will not respond until the government does the needful by paying their allowances,” he further said.

He revealed that sources confirmed “the allowances approved for them in the past only ended in the hands of their bosses,” while quoting the Head of Yala Local Government Administration, Cecilia Ogah, as promising to pay the allowances on Monday.

He lamented that the Ijiegu people can no longer go to farm even as he added that, “All the public and private schools in Ijiegu Yache Community have not reopened for the this first term of 2023/2024 academic session due to the crisis and especially the fear of attacks like it’s currently being witnessed for days now.”

A community leader from Ijiegu, who spoke on condition of anonymity citing security reasons said, “Our community is bleeding and losing lives on a daily basis.

“The shocking aspect is that the military in Benue State has been allegedly accompanying the Tiv Militia to attack the Ijiegu-Yache community.

“Sometimes, the Tiv Militia are dressed in full military uniforms, attacking the Ijiegu-Yache people, killing innocent children, women, the aged and youths while the military and Police stationed in the community by the Cross River State government do nothing to avert attacks.

“They only say they are not getting the promised allowances they were promised to be getting.

“The situation is getting worse day by day, the military in Benue State alongside the Tivs crossed the boundary, travelled like two and a half miles to attack on Sunday October 29, 2023 while the military stationed in Ijiegu-Yache Community has addressed the people that they should expect the remaining days going forward as black days.

“The Tivs keep attacking our people. The soldiers stationed in the community do nothing. Now they are telling our people to be ready for military invasion,” the Chief further alleged.

He further lamented that, “In spite of all these, there is no medical facility to give first aid and attend to the injured.

“Many people are also dying of depression. Just yesterday(Sunday), the man whose houses were burnt down, properties destroyed and 2 grandchildren gruesomely murdered by the Tivs, died while sleeping.”

The Secretary General of the Community Relief Group, Yache, handling relief efforts to the displaced persons and providing treatments for the injured, Victor Achuta, told this outlet that, “I witnessed the attack of Sunday, three of our people were shot at by men in Army Uniform. One died on the spot.

“The injured were evacuated and are receiving treatments at the hospital.

“We are calling on the military authority to call their men to order. The governments of the two states must act fast because Tiv people attack our people with sophisticated guns while our people keep defending themselves with machetes, and that means we will all be killed,” he said.

The spokesman of the Army, Onyema Nwachukwu did not respond when contacted.

However, the commander of the army unit sent to keep the peace, Otomiyo Omagware denied the army involvement and said efforts are on to bring a lasting solution to the crisis.

He also did not confirm how many people have been killed in the three-month old crisis.

Speaking on telephone which he said was from the crisis spot, Omagware said, “By the special grace of God, on Wednesday we are having an enlarged meeting with the people of Cross River State and the people of Benue State at the centre of these two places to bring a lasting peace to this crisis.

“We are convening a meeting to sign a Peace Accord.

“The meeting will involve all the security agencies. I will be there so that the Benue people can come and party, and the Cross River people can go to Benue State.

“Our allowances have been paid up to date. The local government chairman has paid our allowances up to date. We cannot tell lies against that man,” the commander said.

Ogah meanwhile corroborated Omagware’s statement that the soldiers have been paid when she called our Correspondent.

She said, “I’m a mother. They have been paid. We have paid them three times since they have been there.

“I have spoken to the Deputy Governor and he has made another approval which would be disbursed to them immediately. So we are not owing them any allowances.”

She added that she is using her position as the head of the council “to convene a meeting to sign a Peace Accord and resolve this crisis.”