By Muhammad Mamman
Tension flared in Benue State on Saturday as angry youths barricaded the busy Makurdi–Lafia–Abuja highway with the corpses of three villagers allegedly murdered earlier that morning by suspected armed herdsmen at Abagena and Atsom, on the outskirts of Makurdi Local Government Area.
The incident came less than 24 hours after two people were reportedly killed in a separate attack at Tse Adaa village in neighbouring Guma LGA.
Hundreds of residents trooped to the highway around 9 a.m., grounding traffic between Makurdi and Abuja. Protesters said the victims were attacked on their farms, with some villagers still missing and feared abducted.
“Our people were in the farms around 8:30 a.m. when the herders struck. Three bodies have been recovered, but many others are still unaccounted for,” said one protester, Ushahemba, who added that villagers were too frightened to venture further into the bush.
The demonstrators demanded Governor Hyacinth Alia’s presence, saying the blockade was meant to force authorities to confront the unrelenting violence that has plagued farming communities.
Security operatives were later deployed to the scene and persuaded the protesters to reopen the highway. Police authorities were unavailable for comment at the time of filing this report
