Former Military Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (Rtd) has expressed disappointment over the handling of herdsmen killings and general security situation in the country and called on the security agencies to invite and question the leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore who had threatened to unleash violence on Benue State, and later justified the killings, for their role in it.

He particularly frowned at the killing of innocent unarmed villagers by the invading herdsmen which has continued unabated.

Gen. Gowon stated this when he visited Governor Samuel Ortom at the government house in Makurdi to commiserate with him, the government and people of the state on the killings in the state.

The former Head of State who said he was out of the country when two Catholic Priests and 17 other worshippers were killed in a church in the state during a morning mass, expressed the condolences of his group, “Nigeria Prays” to the government and people of the state.

Gen. Gowon expressed grief at the religious dimension the killings has assumed and called on the authorities to redouble their efforts to deal with the security situation, warning that if that is not done, the country could descend into a religious war, with no one coming out victorious.

He commended Governor Ortom for his admirable and matured handling of issues concerning the killings and devastation of communities noting that “for us to survive as a nation, we must learn to live together as one regardless of ethnicity or religion”.

He disclosed that though the killings in the state have reduced a little due to the change of tactics by the military who upgraded their operation in the state from “exercise cat race” to “operation whirl stroke”, the threat is not yet over as killings still go on in many places.

According to him, the present structure of the Nigerian federation is sick and defective, and in need of injection which must be given intravenously for reasons of its urgency.

Governor Ortom who threw his weight behind restructuring, explained that it would eliminate many of the contradictions and imbalances that have limited the capacity of the federating states to flourish and maximise the benefit of their existence.

•Excerpted from New Telegraph report

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