Locals Charge Government Tries to Spin Bad News
By Mike Odeh James and Olikita Ekani
(MAKURDI) Authorities in Kwande County (Local Government Area) of Central Nigeria’s Benue State have prevented families from conducting a planned mass burial for victims of attacks, according to Vanguard.
Residents allege the move was intended suppress media coverage that the federal government feared would further damage its reputation in Washington, D.C., where the U.S. Congress is mulling whether to pass the Religious Freedom Accountability Act, sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith (New Jersey Republican) and Rep. Riley Moore (W. Va Republican).
U.S. Attorney Accuses Chairman of Sabotaging Burial
An attorney representing the U.S.-based Christian humanitarian group Equipping the Persecuted (ETP) has accused the Kwande County chairman of actively sabotaging the planned mass burial.
Franc Utoo, the ETP representative said Chairman Vitalis Terhile Neji moved to stop the ceremony after learning that ETP, Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, and activist Alex Barbir were helping organize the burial.
The chairman first sent messages to bereaved families promising that the local government would cover burial costs if the mass burial was cancelled. Families reportedly rejected the offer, according to an interview exclusively with TruthNigeria.
The ETP representative said Neji then contacted the Department of State Services (DSS). An ETP employee in Kwande was summoned to the DSS office but was later released with a security escort after he explained the organization’s humanitarian mission.
The situation allegedly escalated further on Thursday, March 12.
According to ETP, the chairman hired more than 100 security men – who arrived unexpectedly in in two commercial buses – to disrupt the burial ceremony. At the same time, the mortician responsible for the corpses, the only person holding the key, reportedly was kidnapped, leaving families unable to retrieve the bodies.
“The County boss cannot prevent the mass killing of Christians and Tiv’s in Benue, can nonetheless prevent the mass burial of those killed,” said attorney Utoo.
Residents: Government Blocking Mass Burial
Residents say the cancellation of the burial has deepened the trauma already facing families who lost relatives in the attacks.
Locals interviewed by TruthNigeria and Church leaders say the victims were gruesomely murdered by armed Muslim Fulani Ethnic Militia (FEM), and the government’s decision to block the burial has sparked anger across affected communities.
The burial, scheduled for Thursday, March 12, was intended for 11 victims killed in Mbachom and 2 others from a neighboring community in Turan District. Families and local Christian leaders, Christian missionaries had gathered at a mortuary in Jato-Aka, the county headquarters, to retrieve the bodies when the burial was abruptly cancelled on orders from the county chairman.
The killings are part of a wave of violence that has plagued Nigeria’s Middle Belt region, where predominantly Christian farming communities are forced to defend themselves against armed groups linked to Fulani herders. Residents and advocacy groups say the violence increasingly is evidence of a Christian genocide.
Residents: Government Blocking Mass Burial
Fabian Terseer Yaaga, a resident of Mbachom who said he witnessed the aftermath of the attack, told TruthNigeria that families had agreed to conduct a mass burial because many victims came from the same community and the violence had devastated several households at once.
“A mass burial was agreed to by the families of the 11 victims in Mbachom, 2 others from a neighboring community and was scheduled for Thursday,” Yaaga said.
“Representatives from United States based organizations, Equipping the Persecuted (ETP) and Building Zion (BZ) had already arrived with caskets and burial support.”
But when mourners arrived at the mortuary, Yaaga said county officials halted the
Kwande officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
U.S.- Based Group Provides Burial Support
Representatives of a Christian humanitarian organization, Equipping the Persecuted (ETP), confirmed they had travelled to the area to support the burial.
Andy Nomsoor, a representative of the group, said ETP had provided caskets, relief materials and financial assistance to the families of the victims.
“We came prepared to assist with the burial on Thursday,” Nomsoor said. “When we arrived, we were informed that the county government had cancelled the burial.”
Nomsoor said the organization decided to hand over the materials and funds directly to the families so they could conduct the funerals individually.
American Missionary Promises Housing Project
An American missionary who travelled to Kwande for the burial has also pledged additional support for communities affected by the attacks.
Alex Barbir, Founder of the Humanitarian Initiative “Building Zion,”” said he was shocked when the burial was cancelled after families had already gathered.
“It was heartbreaking,” Barbir said. “The people had already prepared to bury their loved ones.”
Barbir said his organization plans to work with the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BSEMA) to help rebuild homes destroyed in the violence.
The project will include 200 housing units and six boreholes to provide clean water in affected communities across Turan District, Barbir said.
“These communities have lost not only loved ones but also homes and livelihoods. We want to help them rebuild”, he told TruthNigeria
Church Leaders Condemn Cancellation
Christian leaders in the region also criticized the decision to stop the burial.
Clergy under the umbrella of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) visited the area for the ceremony. Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo, a prominent preacher and advocate for persecuted Christians in Nigeria, addressed grieving families gathered at the mortuary.
“We pray for healing in Turan land,” he said. “This community has suffered repeated attacks and deep trauma.”
Despite the anger surrounding the cancelled burial, he urged residents not to resort to violence.
Security Analyst Questions Response
Edwin Yaaya, a Security Analyst from Turan, said the attacks raise troubling questions about security responses in the region.
Yaaya noted that while villages are repeatedly attacked, mining operations by Chinese entrepreneurs nearby appear to operate without similar threats.
“Why are these attackers not targeting mining sites?” Yaaya asked. “Security personnel protect those areas, yet rural communities remain exposed.”
He argued that stronger security measures and clearer accountability are needed to prevent further violence.
Local leaders say attacks on farming communities have displaced thousands of residents and destroyed homes, churches and farmland.
For families in Turan District, however, the immediate concern remains the burial of loved ones whose deaths have shaken their communities.
As of Friday, residents said they were still waiting for official instructions on when they will be allowed to collect the bodies from the mortuary and conduct individual funerals.
Ekani Olikita is a Conflict Reporter for TruthNigeria.
