Stop killings by herdsmen – WAC-R2P

FILE PHOTO: A herdsman in Nigeria

Kazeem Ugbodaga

Worried by recent killings by herdsmen in Nigeria, the West Africa Responsibility to Protect Coalition (WAC-R2P) has called on the Federal Government to adopt measures to check the menace.

The body spoke in reaction to the fresh killings of about 81 people by herdsmen in Benue State, North Central Nigeria few days ago.

WAC-R2P, in a statement issued by its Executive Director, Wale Adeboye challenged the Federal Government to urgently end herdsmen atrocities in the country, lamenting that herdsmen killings had left behind devastated communities, families, friends and loved ones struggling to cope with life after and eagerly waiting to get justice and healing.

“The trauma of such mass atrocities is unimaginable. The current response from the Nigerian governments and its agencies do not indicate a will to prevent and protect her population from such mass atrocities. Rather than take proactive actions to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice, what the victims get often are less assuring public statements. Such statements do not build societal resilience or reduce the risk of reoccurrence.

“Nigerian government must focus her resources and energy on bringing about immediate long-term solution to the Herdsmen atrocities. The targeting of and invading of communities by Herdsmen is intolerable and constitute mass atrocity crimes. The Nigerian authority must fully hold accountable those committing these atrocities or who impede efforts to halt it.

“With the herdsmen associated killings reaching a climax, the situation must be a source of concern and action for Nigeria and Nigerians. The international community must also wake up and confront the reality that this situation might just be the proof needed to establish the linkages between violent extremism and the movement of Herdsmen,” the body said.

WAC-R2P urged the ECOWAS, African Development Bank (ADB) and other international development agencies/actors to become more interested in factors driving herdsmen’s movement and associated atrocities, stressing that there was need for the Nigerian government of and the international community actors to interrogate the connection of herdsmen crisis in association with global warming and climate change.

It added that unless this situation was addressed holistically, herdsmen crisis posed immediate and future consequences to food security, human security and reduction of poverty of the Nigerian people and the ECOWAS population.