From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
The Benue NGOs Network (BENGONET) has urged the federal government to establish a permanent security outpost in Turan, Kwande Local Government Area (LGA), Benue State, to address escalating violence.
The call was made during a press conference in Makurdi on Wednesday following a two-day field visit to Jato Aka and surrounding communities.
BENGONET Chairman Lazarus Mom reported that over 5,700 lives have been lost since the crisis began in 2011, with more than 150,000 people displaced and widespread destruction of homes, farmlands, schools, health centres, markets, and places of worship.
He identified root causes, including unresolved boundary disputes between Turan and Jukun communities in Taraba State, competition over mineral-rich lands, unregulated open grazing, and weak enforcement of the Anti-Open Grazing Law, leading to recurrent attacks by armed herders.
Other factors include insufficient security presence, poor road infrastructure hindering emergency responses, and the absence of formal Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps or coordinated humanitarian support
BENGONET recommended high-level dialogue involving Benue and Taraba governments and the National Boundary Commission to resolve boundary disputes, stricter enforcement or review of the Anti-Open Grazing Law, and a permanent security outpost in Turan.
They also called for strategic road construction, formal IDP camps with SEMA and NEMA support, and logistics and training for community vigilante groups under formal security supervision.