Police has protected lives and properties in Benue, says spokesperson

The Nigeria Police Force has expressed its displeasure with public discontent with its handling of the security crisis in Benue State and claimed that it has lived up to its responsibility.

Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Jimoh Moshood, said this during an appearance on Channels Television on Tuesday, February 6, 2018.

The spokesperson had been invited to speak opposite Governor Samuel Ortom's Chief Press Secretary, Terve Akase, about the security crisis that has led to the death of at least 80 people in the state.

According to Moshood, the police should be commended for containing the crisis to only only two Local Government Areas of the state.

He said the criticism against the police force in regards to the crisis has been unfair as it has effectively quelled the crisis from escalating through the rest of Benue.

He said, "Police has lived up to its responsibility of protecting lives and properties. What we have as our duty in the constitution is to protect lives and properties and we've been doing that.

"There is no way you can work in isolation without engaging the people and that's what we're doing.

"If there are crises in Guma and Logo, and they have been prevented from spreading to other parts of the state; you just have one or two pockets of incidents in some local governments.

"Benue State has 23 Local Government Areas and this crisis is restricted to only Logo and Guma and the incident we have in Makurdi and that of Gboko; then we have prevented so many other attacks.

"As we speak, 105 people were arrested for the incident in Makurdi and they were taken to court.

"What I'm trying to point out is that we have lived up to our responsibility but the government and the good people of Benue must appreciate that we prevented the crisis from escalating."

The Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, has been involved in a public spat with Governor Ortom over the state's anti-open grazing law which has been blamed for the violent clashes between local farmers and nomadic cattle herders.

After the IGP was reported to have said in a meeting that the law should be suspended until the Federal Government establishes ranches, the governor called for his resignation.

ALSO READ: All you need to know about herdsmen crisis in Benue

Benue attacks

In attacks allegedly carried out by Fulani herdsmen in Guma and Logo Local Government Area of Benue between Sunday, December 31, 2017, and Tuesday, January 2, 2018, 50 people were reportedly killed.

11 other people were killed in a fresh attack on Tombu village of Logo LGA, again by suspected Fulani herdsmen, on Saturday, January 6.

The bodies of 73 men, women and children were buried at a mass burial ceremony organised by the state government on January 11.