Dr. Nwachukwu Anakwenze, former PDP presidential aspirant and Regent of Abagana, has publicly demanded the immediate resignation of Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia, accusing him of failing to protect citizens from a wave of deadly attacks that have devastated rural communities. Speaking on Kaftan National Television on June 27, 2025, Anakwenze said the governor’s perceived inaction amounted to negligence and has intensified calls for urgent leadership change in the state.

Anakwenze painted a grim picture of the security situation, saying dozens have been killed and many more displaced by repeated raids. “The biggest job for a President or Governor is protection of life and property of the people. If any governor or the president is not willing to do that, then I’m calling for them to resign,” he declared, criticizing what he described as reliance on “federal police and security” that arrive only after mass casualties.

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In an impassioned appeal to local communities, Anakwenze urged self-reliance and grassroots security measures. He called for state-sponsored legislation to establish and train vigilante units across local governments, arguing that communities must organize their own defense rather than wait for external help. “Security starts from your place, your village, your town,” he said, urging towns to raise funds for vehicles and equipment and to create mutual defence pacts with neighbouring villages.

Anakwenze’s remarks were stark and controversial. He recounted incidents of mass killings and warned that unless perpetrators are captured and harshly punished, attacks will continue: “If you murder somebody, you need to be murdered, too,” he said, a statement likely to draw both support from fearful communities and criticism from human-rights advocates and legal experts.

The Regent also pushed back against what he called complacency and spiritual passivity among victims. “They want you to be crying and be weak… The outside world is not going to help you. All the help is going to come from yourself,” he told viewers, urging practical preparedness over reliance on prayers or blaming others.

Anakwenze’s demand for Governor Alia’s resignation adds pressure to an already tense environment in Benue. Whether the Alia administration will respond to the resignation call, adopt Anakwenze’s proposed vigilante legislation, or face broader political fallout remains an unfolding story as communities and leaders scramble for solutions to stem the violence.