Peter Obi, the 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, has condemned the recent killings in Benue and Plateau.

In a post on X on Monday, the former Anambra governor said the killing of scores in Otukpo-Nobi village, Benue, alongside the killing of nine members of the same family, including a month-old baby, in Riyom, Plateau, was another reminder of Nigeria’s cycle of bloodshed.

“For years, families in Benue, Plateau and other communities across Nigeria have lived under the constant shadow of fear, violence and displacement.

“Mothers have buried their children, children have become orphans overnight, farmers have abandoned their lands, and entire communities have been left devastated. We cannot continue to accept this tragic cycle as though it were normal. It is not,” he said.

Mr Obi said the primary responsibility of any government is the protection of lives and property, adding that every Nigerian life is sacred and every life lost is one too many.

He said the victims were not mere statistics but fathers, mothers, children, breadwinners and future leaders whose dreams had been violently cut short.

Peoples Gazette reported the killing of residents in Otukpo-Nobi, Benue and the killing of eight members of a family, including a three-month-old baby, in separate attacks on Wereng Camp and Kum village in the Riyom council area of Plateau.

Mr Obi said the time had come to move beyond routine condemnations after every attack, stressing that Nigerians deserved a security architecture that is proactive rather than reactive, driven by intelligence, rapid response and accountability.

“Those responsible for these atrocities must be identified, arrested and prosecuted. The culture of impunity must end,” he said.