The Niger Delta Congress (NDC) has issued a scathing rebuke of the Nigerian government’s failure to protect the people of Benue and the Middle Belt, where relentless violence has turned communities into slaughterhouses. In a statement released on 14th June 2025, suspected armed herders attacked Yelewata and Daudu in Guma Local Government Area, killing over 100 people, including women and children, and leaving entire villages in ruins. On 1st-2nd June, gunmen struck Gwer West and Apa, leaving at least 43 dead, with local counts suggesting up to 65 fatalities. In May, 42 people were massacred in Gwer West’s Ahumbe, Tyolaha, and Tse-Ubiam villages, with a Catholic priest critically wounded.
International reports over 6,800 deaths in Benue since May 2023, with 450,000 displaced and over 200 villages destroyed. The NDC questions the government’s response, asking, “What is a human life worth in Nigeria?” In Benue, it seems the answer is nothing.
The NDC has accused the government of blatant hypocrisy, prioritising economic interests over human lives. While the government acts swiftly to protect oil revenue, it has shown no such urgency in saving Benue’s endangered communities. The statement highlights a stark disparity, noting that human lives in oil-rich regions are valued less than the wealth extracted, reducing human life to a mere afterthought behind securing capital and profit.
The congress demands immediate action to end the bloodshed in Benue and the Middle Belt, calling for the deployment of necessary resources, protection of communities, and bringing perpetrators to justice. Over 1.19 million people are displaced in Nigeria’s North-Central region, with Benue suffering the most. The NDC insists that authorities prove every Nigerian life matters, not just the profits from oil fields, until dignity is restored to Benue and the Middle Belt.
