By Tajudeen Balogun
Presidential candidate of the opposition Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 presidential elections, Mr Peter Obi has reacted to reports of raging carnage in parts of Taraba, Benue and Kogi States, linking the situation to what he called a failure of leadership and a “gaping wound in the soul of our nation”.
Obi’s reaction was posted on his verified X handle on Wednesday.
The LP Chieftain recounted that in recent months, a wave of violence has devastated communities across the two States, claiming countless lives and wiping out families.
Among the victims, he listed were: children, women, and even men of faith, casualties of a prolonged crisis that shows no sign of abating.
The killings, Obi lamented were staggering, yet the response remained weak and muted. He lamented that as homes were destroyed and communities torn apart.
According to him, Nigeria appears to be “normalizing the unacceptable: mass killings, displacement, and the collapse of law and order.”
He warned that the casualties are not mere statistics, affirming “they are our fellow Nigerians. Each life lost is a tragedy that must not be ignored”.
Obi’s post reads in part: “I have always maintained that the primary duty of the National government is the protection of life and property. When this duty is repeatedly ignored when innocent citizens are butchered and nothing changes, we must ask ourselves: What kind of nation are we building? What future are we promising our children?
“I mourn with the good people of Taraba, Benue, and Kogi. I share their grief, and I feel their pain. But I also raise my voice because silence in the face of such horror is complicity. We need urgent action, not rhetoric.
“We need justice, not excuses. We as leaders must value human life and will defend it with everything we have.
“Nigeria can not continue like this. This is not the Nigeria we deserve. We must end this bloodshed. We must reclaim our humanity.
“A new Nigeria is POssible!”
