Benue state Governor, Gabriel Suswam, yesterday escaped death by the whiskers when his convoy was ambushed by some armed men suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.
Suswam, who was in company of the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Barr. Terhile Ayua, the Commissioner of Police, Adams Audu, and the Director, SSS, had gone to assess the level of destruction caused by the crisis.
But at Umenger, herdsmen where seen grazing in the natives’ farms and setting houses ablaze.
On sighting the governor’s convoy, they opened fire while the security men with the governor responded.
Our correspondent, who was on the governor’s convoy, reports that a shoot-out ensued, but as one of the police officers confirmed, when it was discovered the fire from the gunmen was coming from superior guns, Suswam and others were hurried into the vehicle and driven away.
At Ukpam village of Mbabaai in Guma local government where there were reports of yet another attack on the natives, Suswam openly wept when he was shown the corpses of about four out of the over 28 persons allegedly murdered by suspected mercenaries working with the herdsmen.
Some natives told Blueprint that the invaders attacked the area at dawn and operated unchallenged between 3am and 5am.
Mbaiorga, a native, said already, women and children had been evacuated from the village.
He said: “We are being attacked, our foodstuff, including yam barns and farms, are being destroyed without anyone coming to our aid. Some of us were killed, while some were captured and taken away.”
The state police boss, who had repeatedly maintained that there was no security challenge at Guma, insisting that the people were running based on rumours, could not utter a word when asked to comment.
At Ukpam, the military that had accompanied the governor in about four trucks, declined to proceed, but Suswam told them off and went ahead with mobile policemen and the Civil Defence operatives.
