Former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Mark Gbilah, has issued a passionate and urgent appeal on Arise TV over the escalating insecurity and killings in Benue State, declaring emphatically: “Now, at this point, when my people are being killed, I cannot keep quiet any longer.” In a no-holds-barred interview, Gbilah, who represented Gwer West Federal Constituency in the 8th and 9th National Assembly, painted a dire picture of the humanitarian crisis unfolding in his home state.
With rising attacks by armed herders and bandits, Gbilah described the situation as nothing short of a “war.” Despite recent moves by the federal and state governments, including the deployment of more troops following the visit of the Chief of Army Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, Gbilah criticized the military leadership for what he saw as symbolic rather than substantive action.
“We are under siege,” he said, emotionally. “My community in Gwer West Local Government is under siege. We are being attacked. This is a war situation.”
While appreciating the Chief of Army Staff’s visit to Benue, Gbilah questioned its effectiveness, saying it was limited to the state capital and failed to include the actual communities affected by violence. “He did not visit the areas concerned. He did not visit his troops on the ground. Some of them are complaining about inadequate resources,” Gbilah said.
He also backed calls for a thorough investigation into allegations of military complicity in the violence. According to him, locals have repeatedly alleged that certain soldiers, possibly acting along ethnic lines, have either failed to act or, worse, aided the attackers.
“The governor is the chief security officer of the state. If he says Abuja-based politicians are complicit, he should make the intelligence public. There needs to be an in-depth investigation,” Gbilah insisted.
In response to questions about calls for the withdrawal of the military, he clarified his stance: “I do not support their withdrawal—but only if they begin to do the job. Right now, they’re more interested in arresting our people for trying to defend themselves than confronting the attackers.”
Gbilah also touched on the long-standing tension between farmers and herders, lamenting the failure to implement Benue’s anti-open grazing law and the continued occupation of farmlands by armed herders. He stressed that the recent appeal by the governor for herders to vacate farmlands should be backed by enforcement, not just rhetoric.
The former lawmaker was particularly critical of the failure to support Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state. “There was a promise of ₦10 billion for rehabilitation and resettlement during the last administration. We have not seen that money. IDPs are barely surviving. NEMA’s interventions are irregular, unlike what we saw in Borno,” he lamented.
Gbilah, now a member of the Labour Party, formerly of the APC and PDP, expressed deep disappointment over what he views as a political and institutional failure to prioritize the lives of Benue citizens.
