The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, on Thursday said residents of Benue State provided support to gunmen who terrorised the state.
According to him, residents of the state provided the gunmen with food and guided them to the location of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp without informing security agencies.
Musa noted that the forces were provided with misleading information to another location, while the gunmen swiftly attacked Yelwata community.
The Defence Chief emphasised the need for locals to stay vigilant and report every suspicious move to security forces.
Speaking at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, he said, “These criminals were harboured by people in the community. They were given food. They were even given women. They were guided on where the IDP camp was located. Yet, security forces received.
“This is why we consistently urge communities to be vigilant and report suspicious activities. Security is everyone’s responsibility.”
Musa also noted that President Bola Tinubu has ordered the deployment of all security agencies, including the army, sir force, and police to hunt down the perpetrators of the attack that left over 150 people dead.
He added that the Nigeria porous borders must be secured, noting that arms were being smuggled into the country from war-torn countries and fighters from Lybia and the Central African Republic were infiltrating the country.
He said Nigeria should learn from Pakistan by fencing its borders.
To the victims of the attack, he expressed that “these senseless killings weigh heavily on our hearts. We remain fully committed to ensuring justice and restoring peace to every part of Nigeria.”
