Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Benue State Government has condemned in strong terms, the killing of two Livestock Guards by suspected herdsmen in Logo Local Government area last Monday.
The murdered Livestock Guards, it was gathered, were among those who had gone to impound cattle that were found grazing openly on peoples farms in the area.
They were said to be taking the impounded cattle to Ugba, the headquarters of Logo local government area when the militia herdsmen shot at them near Ayilamo Village, killing two guards on the spot.
Reacting to the development, Senior Special Assistant to Governor Samuel Ortom on Animal Husbandry, Alhaji Shehu Tambaya expressed shock over the killing saying the attack was an unprovoked assault on the Guards who were only carrying out their normal duty.
Tambaya who stressed that there is a law against open grazing in the state wondered why herdsmen would continue to disobey that law.
“We have a law against open grazing in this state and the Livestock Guards are only there to enforce that law. They do not bear arms, all they do is to seize the cattle and keep them safely for the owners who are later to come, pay some fines and retrieve their livestock.
“One therefore wonders why anyone would attack people who are only doing their jobs with arms to the point of gruesomely killing them in the line of duty. This is sad and unacceptable,” Tambaya stated.
While commiserating with the families and colleagues of the deceased officers, Tambaya called on security agencies to go after the killer herdsmen and arrest them with a view to making them face the full wrath of the law no matter how highly placed they are.
