By Sar Terver
They hold press conferences to announce war. They boast of territorial conquests. They also parade with AK-47s in broad daylight. Yet, there is no arrest, no outrage from federal security agencies.
In Nigeria’s North Central, terror has a face and a voice, and it walks freely while its victims are labeled suspects and treated as criminals.
The story of armed herdsmen in this region is not just a tale of unchecked violence; it is a damning indictment of a security system that seems rigged against the very people it is meant to protect.
Since the herder-farmer crisis escalated over a decade ago, thousands have died across the North Central with Benue, Nasarawa and Plateau states being the worst hit.
Many communities have been wiped off the map. In the midst of it, herders bearing military-grade weapons like AK-47s, FN rifles, and rocket launchers have laid siege to villages—burning homes, displacing people, and killing at will. These are not isolated criminal acts. They are systematic, ideological, and organized.
Back in 2017, leaders of the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore shocked the nation during a press conference in Abuja.
The bandits boldly claimed that the Benue Valley belonged to the Fulani and warned they would “invade” the state to reclaim it.
They also describe the conflict as a resource war and vowed to eliminate the indigenous people if need be.
The Fulani Nationality Movement (FUNAM) took it a step further, calling it a continuation of the 1804 Jihad and promising more bloodshed unless the anti-open grazing law was repealed.
Fast-forward to 2025, and the killings continue with greater frequency. In Benue State, communities such as Gwer East, Guma, and Logo have come under sustained attack.
Despite this, the Nigerian military has focused more on disarming the farming population than confronting the heavily armed militias terrorizing them.
A glaring case occurred in Mbakera, Gwer East, in June 2025. A youth carrying a cutlass, a common farm tool, was shot by a soldier who accused him of holding a weapon. The boy pleaded that it was for farm use. His pleas fell on deaf ears.
This happened shortly after the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, issued an order directing security operatives to arrest anyone in possession of illegal arms, warning that those who resist would be “neutralised.”
The directive was supposed to be impartial and enforce the rule of law. But in practice, it has targeted only the victims—the farmers—while their assailants operate freely.
As the Sankera Ka Bem Facebook group reported, the Mbakera community has remained tense ever since, fearing looming attacks from herdsmen and further military harassment.
Only a week later, troops of Operation Whirl Stroke announced the arrest of two men during an anti-criminal patrol in Makurdi.
The suspects—Felix Agbako, a farmer, and Tsekaa Kyaan, a driver—were paraded alongside an AK-47 allegedly found in their car. The military celebrated the operation as a success.
However, Community leaders pointed out that both men hailed from Gwer East, a flashpoint under repeated attacks by herdsmen. They suspect the arrests were a prelude to weaken the local resistance and expose the community to future assaults.
Meanwhile, the real menace continues unchecked. On May 24, 2025, five members of the Benue State House of Assembly narrowly escaped death when suspected armed herdsmen opened fire on their convoy at Tyo-Mu.
The lawmakers were returning from a public hearing in Katsina-Ala when they ran into the ambush. According to Vanguard, the attackers laid siege to Tyo-Mu and Mbakera for hours. Yet, as with most herdsmen-related attacks, there have been no arrests or official follow-up.
Across the region, the story is the same. In Plateau State, the 2023 Christmas Eve massacre claimed over 200 lives across Barkin Ladi and Bokkos LGAs. Survivors say the attackers were Fulani men on motorcycles, armed with rifles, who moved from village to village killing indiscriminately.
No suspect was apprehended. No press conference from the army. Just silence. In Nasarawa and Niger states, similar attacks have become routine, with little or no security response.
The Nigerian state has consistently failed to label these acts as terrorism, despite clear indicators. The attacks are ideologically driven. The perpetrators operate in cells.
They issue threats, claim responsibility, and target specific ethnic groups. These are hallmarks of terrorism as defined by both Nigerian law and international conventions. Yet, they remain “bandits” in official language—a term that masks the true scale and intent of their operations.
Declaring these armed herdsmen as terrorists would not only change the legal framework for prosecution, it would allow for international support in intelligence gathering, funding, and counterterrorism operations.
More worrisome, it would acknowledge the pain and reality of the victims—communities that have watched their loved ones killed and their lands taken with no justice in sight.
Critics argue that political considerations have prevented the federal government from acting decisively. Some herdsmen leaders are politically connected, and their organizations have deep influence in Abuja.
Others suggest that the military, drawn largely from regions sympathetic to the herders, is reluctant to confront them head-on. Whatever the reasons, the consequences are devastating.
Trust in government is eroding. Resentment is building. And revenge attacks are slowly becoming a dangerous temptation for affected communities.
General Christopher Musa may have given an honest order. But honesty without balance is injustice. If cutlass-wielding farmers are being gunned down, then AK-47-wielding herders must not be allowed to speak on national TV unchallenged.
The selective enforcement of the CDS order turns victims into criminals and emboldens the real aggressors.
What is happening in North Central Nigeria is not just a security crisis.
It is a moral collapse. When terrorists are allowed to walk freely, while those defending their land are hunted, it sends a message that violence pays. That the law is for the weak. That impunity reigns.
The time to act is now. Nigeria must declare the armed Fulani militias terror organizations. Anything less is complicity.
