Yelewata IDPs Protest Poor Conditions as Tinubu’s Benue Visit Faces Criticism

Hundreds of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Yelewata, Guma Local Government Area, Benue State, staged a peaceful protest in Makurdi on Thursday, June 19, 2025, decrying severe hunger, inadequate relief materials, and poor living conditions at their temporary shelter in the Makurdi International Ultra Modern Market. The IDPs, displaced by deadly attacks by suspected armed herders on June 13–14 that killed over 200 people, mostly women and children, blocked Abu King Shuluwa Road, chanting solidarity songs and demanding government intervention. Protester Liambe expressed frustration over alleged neglect and the mishandling of a N12 million donation by SGF George Akume and a senator, stating, “They brought us here but left us in hunger. Nobody has given us anything.” The Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BSEMA), through Administrative Officer Dr. Donald Komgbenda, dismissed the protest as sponsored, asserting that food distribution was ongoing and profiling was necessary to ensure fair allocation to the 3,541 IDPs, up from 190 initially. Komgbenda noted that N6 million was allocated to the Yelewata community, with the rest for camp management, and food was being distributed daily after initial cooked meals proved unsustainable.

President Bola Tinubu’s condolence visit to Benue on Wednesday, June 18, drew sharp criticism from opposition leaders. Peter Obi, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, lambasted Tinubu and Governor Hyacinth Alia for turning the visit into a “campaign rally,” citing celebratory displays, including children waving in the rain, instead of solemn mourning for the 200+ victims. Obi contrasted this with leaders like South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, who visited flood victims without fanfare, and urged a focus on food, shelter, and trauma support. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, via his Media Adviser Paul Ibe, called the visit a “political spectacle,” criticizing the lack of arrests and the tear-gassing of peaceful protesters by security agencies. Ibe argued that political appointees in security roles prioritize politics over expertise, exacerbating insecurity. Rights activist Dele Farotimi echoed these sentiments, stating it would have been better if Tinubu had not visited, as his focus on 2027 overshadowed the tragedy, with only the Tor Tiv’s speech addressing the “genocidal invasion” by herders.

Tinubu, during his visit, directed SGF George Akume to coordinate a peace committee with former governors, traditional rulers like the Tor Tiv and Och’Idoma, and other stakeholders to address the crisis, emphasizing land-grabbing as a core issue. He ordered security chiefs, including IGP Kayode Egbetokun and General Christopher Musa, to arrest the perpetrators, questioning the lack of arrests despite the massacre’s scale. Senator Abdul-Aziz Yari, Senate Committee Chairman on Water Resources, defended Tinubu’s commitment, asserting that the president’s directive was not an empty threat and that the criminals would be apprehended swiftly. Yari highlighted Tinubu’s empathy in rescheduling a Kaduna trip to visit Benue, urging a “whole-of-society” approach to combat insecurity. The Nigeria Police Trust Fund’s Executive Secretary, Femi Sheidu, also called for justice, stressing the need for a responsive policing system to prevent such atrocities.

The Yelewata massacre, part of a wave of violence claiming 1,043 lives in Benue from May 2023 to May 2025 (per Beacon Security), has displaced over 6,527 people to IDP camps, with 2 million IDPs statewide facing dire conditions, per diaspora leaders. The protests and criticisms underscore deep frustration with government inaction, with calls for a state of emergency and tactical security deployments growing louder. The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) condemned the tear-gassing of protesters and demanded a victims’ compensation fund and community-led peace councils. Despite BSEMA’s claims of food distribution, the IDPs’ plight and the lack of arrests highlight ongoing challenges, with X posts like @ChuksEricE amplifying allegations of relief material mismanagement and @firstladyship decrying a media blackout on the crisis.