CSOs Urge FG to Demilitarise South-east, Investigate Alleged Extortion by State Agents

Linus Aleke in Abuja 

A consortium of civil society organizations (CSOs) has urged the federal government to demilitarise civilian spaces in the South-east and address credible allegations of misconduct by state agents, including extortion and abuse of human rights at checkpoints. 

The CSOs noted that incidents of extortion, brutality, and harassment at these checkpoints remain largely uninvestigated, even when widely reported in mainstream and social media. 

The group further lamented the federal government’s continued silence on these concerns, including its failure to proscribe or designate armed herdsmen as terrorists under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, despite their widely documented acts of terror, which further undermines public confidence in state institutions. 

To this end, the CSOs also demanded that the federal and state governments and the security agencies must ensure the equitable enforcement of all extant criminal laws against any individual or group, regardless of ethnicity or affiliation, found culpable of violence, destruction, or displacement.

A statement jointly signed by the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAC) and seven others further demanded that the Nigeria Police Force and other law enforcement agencies immediately prioritise the investigation, arrest, and prosecution of perpetrators of herdsmen-related violence in the South-east. 

Other demands include: “That South-east governors immediately convene regional security summits with affected communities, traditional rulers, civil society, and other relevant stakeholders to develop actionable community-based strategies to protect lives and property. That the National Human Rights Commission, Legal Aid Council, and Nigerian Bar Association intensify oversight and legal support for victims of herdsmen attacks and unlawful detentions linked to retaliatory community actions.” 

Stressing that their people deserve the protection of the law and the fairness of its application, the CSOs noted that the continued failure of state and federal institutions to confront this threat undermines the integrity of the nation’s democracy and the rule of law. 

 According to the statement, “We, the undersigned CSOs in the South-east, express profound concern over the continued and escalating attacks by armed bandit herdsmen on our communities across the five southeastern states of Nigeria (Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo). These attacks are not isolated incidents but part of a broader pattern of violence and impunity that has gone largely unaddressed by the Nigerian state and its security apparatus.

“While law enforcement agencies routinely undertake swift and heavily armed operations against alleged IPOB/ESN camps, we observe with alarm the contrasting inertia with which they respond or fail to respond to the persistent and violent incursions by armed herdsmen. Communities suffer losses of lives, destruction of farmlands, and displacement, with little or no meaningful state intervention.

Highlighting recent attacks by marauding herders in the South-east, the CSOs stated: “In Abia State, communities in Isuikwuato, Umunneochi, and Obingwa LGAs have repeatedly decried attacks, kidnappings, and farm destruction by suspected herdsmen, with little or no response from law enforcement. In Anambra State, parts of Ayamelum and Orumba North LGAs continue to face herdsmen-related violence, forcing farmers to abandon their lands.”

“In Ebonyi State, the Amegu Village, Nkalaha community in Ishielu LGA, has witnessed killings and deadly attacks by suspected Fulani herders. In Enugu State, recent invasions in Eha-Amufu and Uzo-Uwani have left scores dead and displaced, with survivors alleging complete abandonment by security forces. In Imo State, several incidents of farmland destruction and attacks by suspected herders have been reported in the Okigwe zone, yet no significant arrests or prosecutions have been made. Also, for the second time within a month, suspected Fulani herdsmen have laid siege on the Owerri-Ngor Okpala-Aba road, killed people, and kidnapped passengers in public commercial vehicles.”

These attacks, the group said, persist in a climate of apparent selective enforcement of the law, adding that communities who attempt to defend themselves from destruction and violence have faced retaliatory state actions, including arrests and forced financial compensations to herders.

According to the statement, “In some cases, these punitive actions are executed at the behest of state government officials seeking to appease vested interests rather than uphold justice. For example, in 2020, residents of Ezinihitte Mbaise in Imo State were reportedly forced by state actors to pay compensation to herders whose cattle were harmed after destroying local farmlands. No restitution was made to the farmers, nor were the herders prosecuted for trespass or destruction under the criminal law and relevant land use statutes. This pattern raises legal and constitutional concerns.”

“Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government. Furthermore, Section 42 prohibits discrimination on any basis, including selective application of justice.”

Noting that the seeming reluctance of law enforcement to prosecute armed herdsmen, juxtaposed with their destructive and unrestrained operations in the Southeast, suggests a breach of the principle of equal protection under the law, the CSOs added that it also raises questions about the neutrality of federal law enforcement agencies and the militarisation of the Southeast, which now hosts an excessive number of security checkpoints, particularly in civilian areas – an act inconsistent with the principles of federalism and civil liberties.