Protest erupts in Benue; INEC office, state facilities, residences burned down

Young protesters in Benue state are protesting the activities of bandits in the Ukum local government area of the state.

The protesting youths gathered at the local government secretariat to be addressed by the Caretaker Chairman but went on to set the local government secretariat on fire. Similarly, the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the High Court in Sankera were burnt down.

Further aggravating the situation, the residence, secondary school, and warehouse belonging to Hon. Paul Biam, Chief of Staff to the State Government, located in Biam, were torched. The residence of the district head of Borkiyo was also set ablaze amid the unrest.

Protesters further disrupted normalcy by blocking the federal road leading to Taraba State, causing significant traffic disruptions and escalating regional tensions.

Security forces faced a challenging situation when a police station came under attack by the protesters. Despite the assailants’ efforts, officers successfully repelled them, resulting in two deaths.

INEC’s reaction to the unrest in Benue

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that its office in the Sankara area of Ukum LGA, Benue State, was set ablaze by protesting youths on Wednesday.

Sam Olumekun, INEC’s national commissioner and chairman for information and voter education, released a statement detailing the incident, which was initially reported by Sam Egwu, the state’s resident electoral commissioner (REC).

According to the statement, the youths, frustrated by the activities of bandits in their communities, launched an attack on the INEC office and other government facilities around 2 pm.

“Although no casualties were reported, the building has been extensively damaged. Office furniture and other movable and immovable materials, including 10 electric generators, 300 ballot boxes, and 270 voting cubicles, were destroyed in the attack,” the statement reads.

Security agencies have been alerted to the situation and have already deployed personnel to the area to restore order and investigate the incident.