These Are Not Just Criminals’ — Dickson Warns of Mercenary-Style Attacks in Nigeria
Senator Seriake Dickson says Nigeria is unprepared for the scale and sophistication of the foreign-backed attacks witnessed in recent massacres like the June 14 killings in Benue State.
Speaking on Arise News, the former Bayelsa governor criticised President Bola Tinubu for visiting the state five days after the deadly assault, which left over 200 people dead in Yelewata and Daudu communities.
“While it’s commendable that President Tinubu visited Benue state, albeit he could have gone earlier than he did. The decisions taken and declarations made were not as forceful as some would have wanted,” Dickson said.
He dismissed official narratives labelling the violence as communal clashes, insisting that the situation reflects a more insidious threat.
“What has been going on in Benue, Plateau, and in some other places is actually a collective assault. It’s an assault on a collective psyche of Nigerians and as human beings,” he said.
“For example, the way some of us look at this is what has been going on there is not an issue of reconciliation — it’s an issue of pure criminality that is almost at a genocidal level.”
Calling the attackers “mercenaries” and “commando units of foreign armies,” Dickson said Nigeria’s security apparatus is unprepared:
“These are not just criminals. These are mercenaries, commando units of foreign armies trained elsewhere. They are well equipped, well armed, well prepared tactically, and our system is completely unprepared for that.”
