Benue’s Bleeding Farms and Abuja’s Deafening Silence – A Nation’s Priorities Adrift By Eyitayo Olajide

While Nigeria’s political class engages in a frenzied dance of coalition-building and power-brokering in the hallowed halls of Abuja, a silent catastrophe unfolds in Benue State. Our nation’s “Food Basket” is hemorrhaging, its farmers terrorized, its fields lying fallow, and its people displaced, yet the clamor from the corridors of power seems utterly detached from this existential crisis. This blatant disregard for the escalating insecurity in Benue and the profound unrest crippling our agricultural backbone is not merely neglect; it is a profound betrayal of the Nigerian people’s most fundamental need: security and sustenance.

The headlines from Abuja are dominated by negotiations, defections, and the intricate calculus of forming the next government. Politicians meticulously strategize over positions and patronage, their focus laser-sharp on consolidating political capital. Meanwhile, the headlines from Benue tell a horrifyingly different story: villages sacked in the dead of night, farmers slaughtered defending their livelihoods, thousands seeking refuge in overcrowded camps, and vast swathes of fertile land rendered inaccessible by the specter of violence, primarily from armed herder militias and other criminal elements. The once-bountiful yields of Benue, crucial for feeding the nation, are dwindling as fear keeps farmers from their fields. The unrest isn’t just a security issue; it’s an assault on Nigeria’s food security and economic stability, driving up prices and pushing millions closer to hunger.

The Cost of Calculated Indifference

This focus on political coalitions at the expense of tangible security solutions in Benue exposes a dangerous disconnect:

1. Priorities Perverted:The primary constitutional mandate of any government is the security and welfare of its citizens (Chapter II, Section 14(2)(b), 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, as amended). The relentless pursuit of political permutations while farmers are massacred and communities live in perpetual fear represents a fundamental inversion of this duty. Political survival appears to trump human survival.

2. Agricultural Annihilation: Benue isn’t just another state; it is central to Nigeria’s agrarian economy. The sustained violence directly translates to reduced food production, contributing significantly to the nation’s soaring food inflation and impending food crisis (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reports consistently highlight rising food costs). Ignoring Benue’s plight is akin to willfully sabotaging the nation’s pantry.

3. Humanitarian Catastrophe Ignored: The massive internal displacement within Benue constitutes a humanitarian disaster. IDP camps are overflowing, lacking adequate sanitation, healthcare, and education. This human suffering, documented by numerous NGOs and media reports, receives scant attention compared to the political maneuvers in Abuja.

4. Erosion of Trust: The palpable sense of abandonment felt by the people of Benue breeds disillusionment and deepens ethnic and communal fault lines. The government’s perceived inaction, or ineffective action, erodes public trust in its ability and willingness to protect all citizens equally.

A Call for Tangible Action, Not Political Theater

The people of Benue, and indeed all Nigerians who rely on the food their land produces, demand more than sympathetic rhetoric or temporary security deployments that fail to address root causes. They demand:

• Urgent, Concerted Security Operations: Not reactive strikes, but sustained, intelligence-driven operations to dismantle militia camps, recover stolen arms, and secure vulnerable communities and farmlands. This requires adequate personnel, resources, and political will.

• Addressing Root Causes: A sincere national dialogue and concrete strategies to address the complex drivers of farmer-herder conflicts, including resource competition (land, water), climate change impacts, and proliferation of small arms. Banditry and criminality must also be tackled head-on.

• Support for Victims and Agriculture: Comprehensive rehabilitation programs for IDPs, including safe return and resettlement support. Significant investment in revitalizing agriculture in Benue – inputs, credit, storage, and market access – to restore livelihoods and food production.

• Accountability: Holding perpetrators of violence accountable through the justice system, regardless of affiliation.

Inconclusion, Nigeria stands at a crossroads. The path chosen by its political elite – obsessing over power dynamics while the foundations of national stability (food security and citizen safety) crumble in Benue – leads only to deeper crisis. The farmers of Benue are not merely statistics; they are the lifeblood of our nation’s sustenance. Their blood watering the fields and their cries for help must pierce the bubble of political maneuvering in Abuja. It is time for our leaders to redirect their focus from the transient allure of coalitions to the enduring imperative of securing lives and livelihoods. The future of Benue, and indeed Nigeria’s food security, depends on it. Coalition building is politics; securing citizens is governance. Nigeria desperately needs the latter.