Insecurity: Defend yourselves with dane guns, Ortom tells Benue residents

Samuel Ortom, Benue governor, has asked residents of the state to defend themselves with dane guns against attacks from gunmen.

Some communities in the state have been attacked by gunmen suspected to be herders. Lives and property have been lost as a result of these attacks.

Speaking at an inter-denominational church service held at the government house in Makurdi, Benue capital, on Sunday, Ortom said the people should defend themselves with weapons not prohibited by law.

The governor said the licence to own a dane gun could be obtained at local government secretariats in the state.

“I will no longer announce the deaths of those killed by Fulani herdsmen, rise up and defend yourselves with weapons not prohibited by law, bows and arrows, spears and knives,” he said.

“Get a licence for dane guns from local government chairmen and use them to defend yourselves.

“God assured me some time back that as long as I lived within the circle of his presence, no weapon fashioned against me shall prosper.”

On his part, Akpen Leva, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), said the resolve by the governors of the southern part of the country to ban open grazing and the movement of cattle by foot is commendable.