6 students, 2 others killed in Benue communal clash
In a surge of violence from the ongoing Bonta/Ukpute communal clash in Benue State, eight people, including six students, have been reported dead. The victims were casualties of the conflict between communities in Konshisha and Oju Local Government Areas, which has escalated in recent months.
The Diiv Progressive Agenda (DiPA) has responded with a pressing appeal to the Benue State government, urging authorities to shut down and relocate the College of Education (COE) in Oju to a safer location. The group believes this move is necessary to protect students from the violence spilling into campus grounds.
In a statement released in Makurdi on Saturday, DiPA officials, Dr James Amove Ukpoko and Dooyum Agav, expressed deep concern over the tragic loss of life and the blockade of the Awajir-Oju road by armed groups. “This blockade,” they noted, “has restricted access to essential services, putting lives at risk and stalling economic activities.”
Shedding light on the situation, DiPA revealed that apart from the COE students, two more individuals attending a funeral were killed in an attack on 31st October. DiPA claims that these incidents are part of a wider effort by Ukpute forces to exert control over Bonta through fear and displacement, stating, “These brutal assaults are not isolated but part of a systematic campaign to dominate Bonta by any means necessary.”
DiPA reports that six COE Oju students, all of Tiv descent, were targeted in July as they tried to return home. “Their only crime was their ethnicity,” DiPA added, listing the victims as Sunday Joshua, Sementu Terzungwe, Tarbee Ikyehegh, Ikyernum Lorshager, Dominic Kpeatsay, and Terwase Shirshima.
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The group highlighted the critical need for intervention, stating, “The continued violence has left families displaced and crops destroyed, while efforts for peaceful resolution have been rebuffed.” DiPA calls on the Benue State government, SEMA, NEMA, and international NGOs to urgently provide aid, as hundreds of families in the area now lack food, shelter, and security.
In a historical context, DiPA claims the hostilities began in September 1997 as a boundary issue, but they have since evolved into a full-scale humanitarian crisis. Efforts to mediate, including a recent peace meeting convened by the Benue Boundary Commission, have reportedly been met with resistance. The group insists that Ukpute has continuously rejected peace talks, calling for the deployment of mobile police units to maintain security along the Oju-Konshisha border.
In closing, DiPA called on Governor Hyacinth Alia to enact immediate security measures to protect those caught in the crossfire, and urged for more concerted efforts toward a lasting peace in the troubled region.
Written by Sakinat Musa Abubakar, Editor at Neptune Prime
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