Once again, Nigerians are mourning. Once again, a community has been attacked. Over 200 lives were lost in Benue State, and once again, the government’s response was slow, underwhelming, and disturbingly familiar.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu finally visited the grieving state days after the massacre. But rather than offer meaningful comfort, justice, or clear plans for action, he delivered tired remarks and gave off the impression that the visit was more of a burden than a duty. His message? That he cancelled another appointment to be there. That people should live in peace and reconcile with one another.
These are not new lines. We’ve heard them before. Former President Muhammadu Buhari once told victims of similar attacks to “accommodate their fellow countrymen.” His spokesman even questioned the value of ancestral land rights, arguing that land has no meaning if the people are dead. It was an outrageous statement then, and sadly, we are still stuck in that same cycle of insensitivity today.
What President Tinubu brought to Benue was not leadership it was a performance. Children stood in the rain to welcome him. Support groups were mobilized to wear political colors and chant support. It felt more like a campaign rally than a condolence visit. How can anyone say they are mourning the dead while staging a celebration?
More insulting were the President’s words comparing human lives to cattle, stating, “The value of human life is greater than that of a cow.” While this may sound like a moral stance, it’s appalling that such a statement even needs to be made in 2025. Are we still debating whether cows are more important than Nigerians?
Apparently, we are. Just last year, a senior senator argued on the Senate floor that cattle were “citizens of Nigeria” and deserved constitutional rights. This same senator, Adamu Aliero, has held positions as a state governor, federal minister, and long-serving legislator. He is well-travelled, well-educated, and yet, he chose to push such a shameful narrative.
This is the problem: while Nigerians are being slaughtered, some of our leaders are more concerned about the rights of cows than the lives of citizens. The President says we must live in peace, but where is the justice for the victims? Where are the arrests? Where is the action?
Nigerians are not asking for too much. We are not even asking for miracles. We are simply demanding that our leaders take the killings seriously, that they stop normalizing violence, and that they stop turning national tragedies into opportunities for public relations.
What good is a condolence message if it is followed by inaction? What good is a promise if the killers are never caught? Every time a massacre happens, we hear the same excuses: that investigations are ongoing, that security agencies have been “directed” to act, or that the President cannot be everywhere at once. Meanwhile, the violence continues, and people are left to bury their dead with no hope for justice.
Even worse, these attacks have evolved from what were once described as farmer-herder clashes into full-blown terrorist invasions. The pattern is clear, the causes are known, and yet, the response remains weak. Government officials give speeches, attend ceremonies, and fly back to Abuja while survivors are left in fear of the next attack.
It is no longer enough to condemn violence. The time for empty condolences has passed. If the government truly believes that human life matters, then it must act decisively. That means arresting those responsible. That means punishing security operatives who fail to carry out orders. That means addressing the root causes of these attacks with more than just words.
President Tinubu was once quick to criticize his predecessors for their inaction during times like this. Now he must hold himself to the same standard. Leadership is not about showing up late and saying the right things. It is about making sure justice is done and lives are protected.
The woman in the hospital with her injured child who turned her face away when government officials entered said more with that gesture than any speech could. She, like millions of Nigerians, is tired of the noise. She wants justice, not pity. She wants safety, not sympathy. She wants a government that values her child’s life more than it values cows or political optics.
Mr. President, it is time to show us not just tell us that Nigerian lives truly matter.
