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Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Benue government has implored the Federal Government to reconsider its decision to withdraw troops from volatile areas where relative peace has been restored.
Senior Special Assistant to Governor Samuel Ortom on Animal Husbandry, Shehu Tambaya in a chat with Daily Sun, yesterday, said the government’s plea was hinged on the fact that it was not yet ripe for troops to be withdrawn from troubled areas in the state. “Our state is not yet safe for that,” Tambaya said.
According to him, criminals and arms bearing herdsmen were hibernating in hideouts and would come out to unleash mayhem on innocent people once they realise that the military have been pulled out.
Tambaya said in Benue, thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were still in camps because it was unsafe to return to their ancestral homes for fear of being attacked by herdsmen.
He warned that withdrawing the military from Benue could portend danger as killer herdsmen are known to invade the state mostly during the dry season.
He, however, acknowledged efforts by Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), a military operation, which he said had ensured security in troubled areas of the state.
