“No more words, we need action”

Former minister of education, Obiageli Ezekwesili, has lashed out at President Bola Tinubu over the massacre of more than 200 people in Benue State, accusing him of demonstrating “zero duty of care” and continuing the legacy of indifference by Nigerian leaders toward mass killings.

In a statement titled “A Memo to My Fellow Citizens on the Gruesome Genocide in Benue”, the former World Bank vice-president described the tragedy as a continuation of “normalized genocide” and criticized what she called the feeble, perfunctory responses of the federal government.

She wrote: “Over the weekend, our fellow citizens were slaughtered in cold blood; hundreds lost with gross impunity.

“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.”

Ezekwesili, who chairs the board of the School of Politics, Policy and Governance (SPPG), said that repeated violence across the country, especially in Benue, Plateau, and Kaduna states, has become normalized because successive presidents, including Tinubu, have failed to act with urgency and accountability.

She recalled embarking on a solo protest to the Presidential Villa in 2018 during a similar wave of killings under former president Muhammadu Buhari, insisting that those who dismissed her concerns at the time now see the consequences of collective silence.

“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.

According to her, “the only condolences that hold meaning for our murdered compatriots in Benue are those backed by action.”

She also condemned the political class for showing “utter disregard for the lives of citizens” and challenged Nigerians to break their silence and resist the culture of passive acceptance.

“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 argued that the nation’s political leadership had become “a wicked band of misleaders” and urged Nigerians to unite in demanding justice, accountability, and people-centered governance.

Ezekwesili ended her statement with a rallying cry to citizens: “When will we collectively say ‘enough’ — and refuse to stand down until the underlying issues of governance are solved to end these deaths?”