BY TEDDY NWANUNOBI

Counsel for the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in Benue State to bring an end to the continued killings in the state.

According to the human rights activist, it is a constitutional intervention that would be needed to tackle the ongoing security crisis in Benue.

He said that, in light of the relentless and gruesome massacre of innocent civilians in the state, and following the recent exoneration of Fulani herdsmen by the state governor, Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, it has become imperative for President Bola Tinubu to invoke its constitutional mandate to protect lives and preserve national security.

He noted that Section 305(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) empowers the president to declare a state of emergency where there is a breakdown of public order or imminent danger to life and property.

In a statement he released on Monday, the rights activist said, given the scale and persistence of the ongoing attacks, allegedly perpetrated by foreign militias infiltrating through the Cameroon border, as reported by the state governor, the constitutional threshold has been surpassed.

“This is no time for political appeasement or partisan manoeuvring. The foremost duty of any government is the protection of its citizens and the defence of its territorial integrity. By absolving known actors and trivialising verified threats, the Benue State Government risks eroding the very foundation of national security coordination.

“The Federal Government must empower the Nigerian security apparatus with full operational autonomy to launch comprehensive operations aimed at identifying, isolating, and neutralising the foreign insurgents terrorising peaceful communities.

“These unprovoked assaults on the aboriginal people of Yelwata and surrounding villages must be confronted with a unified national resolve.

“The governor, as a former spiritual leader turned political figure, must recognise that in times of crisis, leadership demands constitutional fidelity, courage, and unequivocal action – not deflection or denial. If the burden of political office has become too heavy, perhaps a return to the pulpit may better serve his conscience and calling,” he said.

According to him, the lives of Benue’s indigenous peoples must never be reduced to political bargaining chips.

“Their only crime, it seems, is their ancestral heritage and legitimate claim to their homeland. Nigeria stands at a crossroads.

“History will neither forget nor forgive those who remained silent or complicit in the face of a preventable genocide. The time for rhetorical posturing is over. The time for decisive constitutional action is now.

“Let justice rise – not as a whisper, but as a national roar. For every drop of innocent blood cry out – not just for attention, but for justice,” he added.