Five members of the Benue State House of Assembly narrowly escaped death on Thursday night after being attacked by suspected armed herders in the Tyo-Mu community of the state’s Gwer Local Government Area (LGA).
The lawmakers reportedly ran into the armed herders who were attacking the community while on their way from Katsina-Ala LGA for a public hearing on a Bill for a Law to Establish Benue State Civil Protection Guards.
According to a statement issued over the weekend in Makurdi by the Chairman of the State Assembly Committee on Information and Orientation, Elias Audu, the lawmakers’ convoy, which collided with the armed men around 10 p.m., was shot at several times by the marauders, who laid siege to the Tyo-Mu and Mbakera communities for several hours.
He condemned the attack as unjustified and urged security agencies to apprehend the invaders and bring them to justice.
A portion of the statement said: “Suspect herders, numbering more than forty, riding motorcycles ambushed members of the 10th Benue State House of Assembly at Tyo-Mu and fired multiple shots at the vehicles transporting them as they were returning from Katsina-Ala following a Public Hearing on a Bill for a Law to Provide for the Establishment of Benue State Civil Protection Guards and for the purposes connected therewith.
“Those who were attacked include Simon Gabo of Mata State Constituency, Saater Tiseer, the Majority Leader, Chief Whip Ipusu Bemdoo, and Cephas Dyaku of Konshisha.”Remember that these suspected herders had also infiltrated the communities of Tyo-mu and Mbakera for several days without facing any resistance?
The attack’s method of operation raised concerns for Speaker of the State House of Assembly Aondona Dajoh, as it appeared that the state’s enemies, the herders, had meticulously planned the assault.
The Speaker expressed concern that the attack on members during a public hearing on a security bill may not have been a coincidence.Speaking for the State, he declared that the House would not waver in her commitment to fulfill her legislative duty. The House further demands that security personnel apprehend the terrorist right away and prosecute them. Picture source:Vanguard