The President also sympathised with the people of the state and those who lost their loved ones in the attacks.
He urged the people of the state to manage their diversity, anger, and frustration and live as one united people.
During his stay, Tinubu is expected to meet with all stakeholders — including traditional rulers, political, religious, community leaders, and youth groups — to seek lasting solutions to the hostilities.
“In preparation for the visit, President Tinubu has already dispatched the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Inspector General of Police, heads of intelligence agencies, the National Security Adviser, and the Chairmen of the Senate and House Defence Committees to Benue State.
“The President is expected to hold a town hall meeting with all stakeholders during the visit,” a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed on Monday.
Opposition arrowheads Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi had criticised the President for not visiting the people of the troubled North-Central State despite the killing of scores of residents by vicious marauders.
Benue State has been under heavy attacks by suspected herdsmen for some time. The killings have lingered for years, with some linking it to inter-communal conflicts as well as the quest for land dominance between the autochthonous agrarian dwellers and nomadic cattle rearers.
However, the killings in the last few weeks have been without a break. At least over 160 residents were confirmed killed in a series of attacks by suspected herdsmen who wreaked havoc in different communities in the food-producing state.
Widespread Outrage
Pope Leo XIV has since condemned the recent “terrible massacre” in Benue, describing it as “extreme cruelty”. The killings have also attracted widespread protests and national outrage as many Nigerians are utterly displeased with the way the Federal Government has been handling the situation.
Opposition arrowheads Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi have also faulted the government’s handling of the security crisis, calling on the Tinubu administration to live up to its constitutional mandate to secure the lives and property of citizens.
Youths protesting the killings in Benue
On Sunday, the President directed security chiefs to implement his earlier directive to bring lasting peace and security to Benue State.
On Monday, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun arrived the state in the company of other senior management team and ordered for the immediate deployment of additional tactical teams.
The police chief would meet with Governor Hyacinth Alia and other state actors before departing for Abuja.
On his part, Governor Alia sympathised with the people of the state whose loved ones had been killed, who had been displaced and who lost their farmlands. He pledged to work with the Federal Government to end the orgy of violence.
