The House at its plenary session on Wednesday 25, April 2018 resolved to summon the President Buhari to answer questions on the incessant killings around the country.
Presenting the motion on the floor of the House Hon. Mark Gbillah (APC: Benue) stated that the attacks had assumed a new dimension in Benue state yesterday when two Catholic priests, Fr Joseph Gor and Fr Felix Tyolaha, the church catechist and 16 other worshippers were murdered in cold blood by armed herdsmen while attending early morning mass at St Ignatius Catholic mission Ukpo Ayar in Mbalom Gwer-West Local Government Area of the State. He said that this number did not include several persons that attended an early morning funeral near the church and who had been missing since the attacks and have been rumored to have being gunned down by the retreating herdsmen.
Speaking further, Hon. Gbillah said the House was aware that the Benue state government had raised alarm severally to the Army, the Police and other security Intelligence Agencies about the alleged locations of these bandits near Adaka in Makurdi local government and Gbaji in Gwer West local government in the State from where other recent attacks had been launched against neighboring communities and was worried that the said security agencies were yet to employ a proactive strategy to preemptively attack their stronghold nor carry out continuous surveillance of identified flash points. He also lamented that it was unfortunate that the said security agencies usually only responded after scores of innocent citizens had lost their lives and property.
Contributing to the debate, Hon. Dickson Tarkighir (APC: Benue) decried that Benue State once known, as the “food basket of the nation” had become the ‘blood basket of the nation’. He also alleged that the Army was complicit in the killings. Most of the other lawmakers supported this view and blamed the crises in the country on the President’s “failure” to compel the service chiefs to live up to expectations. In particular, Aliyu Magaji (APC: Jigawa) called on the service chiefs to be sacked and stated that the matter went beyond party lines as it was of national interest. Hon Magaji also described the incidents as “a very terrible thing” as “people are being killed on a daily basis.”
Edward Pwajok (APC: Plateau) expressed the opinion that Nigeria was gradually becoming a “failed state” and that the House would be laying the foundation for Nigeria to be declared a failed state if it refused to act. In addition, Hon. Pwajok expressed displeasure of the House moving motions relating to killings on an almost daily basis yet to no avail. He recommended that the leaders of the National Assembly discuss the issues with the President and summon the security chiefs to interrogate them on the highlighted issues.”
To protest against the killings the House of Reps resolved to “shut down” for three legislative days.
