Legal practitioners under the Association of Idoma Lawyers (Owa Ka’Okepo Ki’Idoma) have called on the United States and Israel to extend their military intervention to communities in Benue South Senatorial District, citing ongoing killings by terrorists.
The appeal was made in a statement jointly signed on Friday by the group’s leader, Chief Godwin Obla, SAN, and president, Dr Joshua Musa, SAN, and made available to newsmen in Abuja.
The lawyers condemned in the strongest terms the attack on Akpa-Otobi Community in Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State by suspected Fulani herders, which resulted in the deaths of about four persons, including Mr Igbabe Ochi, a former House of Assembly candidate for the Otukpo-Akpa State Constituency during the 2019 elections.
The attack reportedly occurred around 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, following a failed kidnapping attempt on Sunday night.
Condemnation of Attacks and Call for Action
The group expressed concern over repeated violent attacks by armed herdsmen in Otukpo, Ohimini, Apa, and Agatu Local Government Areas, urging state and federal authorities to act decisively.
“Security agencies must rise to the occasion with the same renewed momentum applied in other parts of the country,” the lawyers said.
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They described the terrorists’ campaign to displace people from their ancestral lands as “wicked, dehumanising, and unacceptable”, noting that crops and economic trees worth hundreds of millions of naira have been destroyed while residents watch helplessly.
“The constitutional rights of our people to their property in farmlands under serial attacks are being destroyed unabated, as if the constitution no longer applies to Idoma Land,” the statement read.
Urgent Appeal for Protection and Compensation
The lawyers called on the Federal Government to assess losses in Benue South and compensate victims adequately.
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“We acknowledge that US military intervention has provided relief to several communities in Nigeria’s Northwest and Northeast.
“Israel has also volunteered to assist in the fight against terrorism. The scourge of mindless killings began in Agatu, where tens of thousands of citizens have lost their lives, often without sufficient media coverage. No other community in Nigeria has suffered as much as Agatu,” they said.
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Detailing the atrocities, the lawyers cited killings, rape, arson, poisoning of streams, destruction of aquatic life, and damage to crops and economic trees, emphasising that these acts are underreported.
“We call on the US and Israel to extend their military intervention to Benue South Senatorial District to secure our land, protect lives and property, and uphold human dignity. This is necessary given the neglect from both federal and state governments,” they said.
Further stressing their fundamental right, they said, “We have a right to life as guaranteed by Section 33 of the 1999 Constitution. Our lives matter.”
Rafiyat Sadiq is a political, justice, and human rights reporter with Pinnacle Daily, known for fearless reporting and impactful storytelling. At Pinnacle Daily, she brings clarity and depth to issues shaping governance, democracy, and the protection of citizens’ rights.
