Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Troops of the Operation WHIRL STROKE (OPWS), on Sunday, killed three gang members of wanted militia leader Terwase Akwaza alias ‘Gana’ and recovered some arms and ammunition from them.
Theatre Commander of OPWS, Maj.-Gen. Adeyemi Yekini disclosed this to newsmen on Monday during a tour of some Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in Logo local government area of the State.
Gen. Yekini revealed that police in Zaki Biam, headquarters of Ukum local government area of the state Sunday night sent a distress call to troops in the town that militia men who were members of Gana group had stormed part of the town.
He said on getting the distress call, his men responded swiftly and engaged the militia in a gun battle during which three of the militia men were shot dead.
“Barely a day after I addressed journalists of the success our troops have recorded in the past six months, members of Gana group on Sunday night invaded part of Zaki Biam.
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“Police in Zaki Biam made a distress call to our men that Gana men had stormed part of the town and the troops responded immediately and they killed three of them,” Yekini said.
The OPWS Commander also revealed that 145,000 displaced persons across Benue, Taraba and Nasarawa states have returned to their ancestral homes.
Confirming the submission of the theatre commandant, Gwer West chairman, Francis Ayaga and his Guma counterpart, Anthony Shawon agreed that many who were displaced by the Fulani invasion in their councils have returned home.
Ayaga said 33,000 of the 34,900 IDPs in his local government have returned to their ancestral home but Shawon who could not give the exact number of returnees however said that no part of the council area is occupied by herdsmen but added that the herdsmen terrorising the council area come from Nasarawa State.
Ayaga said, “In Gwer West 34,951 persons were displaced from there home, most of them were in Naka but with the help of the troops 33,000 have returned homes though it’s not easy for them because most of the homeless guys are staying in ashes.
“But because the major occupation in the local government is farming, they have no option but to go back to their homes,” Ayaga said.
