Leadnaija
Former Minister of Education, Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili, has slammed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the recent killings in Benue State, accusing him of exhibiting “zero duty of care” in the face of persistent mass atrocities across the country.
Ezekwesili, a former World Bank vice president and convener of the #BringBackOurGirls movement, condemned the President’s response to the killings in a strongly worded statement titled “A Memo to My Fellow Citizens on the Gruesome Genocide in Benue” released on Monday.
Over 200 people were reportedly massacred in coordinated attacks on several communities in Benue last weekend, sparking renewed outrage over the federal government’s handling of national security.
Reacting to the tragedy, Ezekwesili stated that Nigeria’s leadership had grown increasingly indifferent to the value of human life.
“Yet again, Tinubu, the man who now bears the title of Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Army, has shown zero duty of care towards the deceased, their families, and the millions of Nigerians left in anguish,” she said.
According to the former minister, the violence in Benue, Plateau, and Kaduna has become “normalized” because successive administrations, including the present one, have consistently failed to act with urgency and accountability.
Ezekwesili recalled her 2018 solo protest to the Presidential Villa during a similar spate of killings under then-President Muhammadu Buhari, lamenting that the warnings she issued then were largely ignored.
“What many citizens – those who looked away, mocked or dismissed the solo protest – failed to realize then was that if we did not collectively demand action from the President… these killings would become normalized. And now, here we are – seven years later,” she said.
She insisted that condolences without decisive action are meaningless, adding: “The only condolences that hold meaning for our murdered compatriots in Benue are those backed by action.”
Calling out Nigeria’s political class, Ezekwesili described the nation’s leadership as “a wicked band of misleaders,” and urged Nigerians to rise above apathy and demand justice, accountability, and citizen-centered governance.
“Government after government continues to show utter disregard for the lives of its citizens. How much longer will we allow Presidents – past and present – to coddle the killers of our people?” she queried.
The former minister, who currently chairs the board of the School of Politics, Policy and Governance (SPPG), urged citizens to break the cycle of silence and push for systemic reforms to end the recurring carnage.
“When will we collectively say ‘enough’ — and refuse to stand down until the underlying issues of governance are solved to end these deaths?” she asked.
Calls have continued to mount on the federal government to act decisively and ensure justice for the victims of the Benue massacre. Rights groups, including the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), have called for the situation to be referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
