Akpete Massacre: Aliashiorkor And The Paradox of Child(ren) Disowning Father 

 *How Governor Alia Betrayed Benue by Ignoring International Protocols 

*Shield Fulani Herdsmen While Citizens Perished

By Morgan Adikwu

The Akpete massacre in Apa Local Government Area, one among the many bloody chapters of Fulani herdsmen attacks across Benue State, has become a devastating symbol of broken trust and failed leadership. In this unfolding tragedy, Governor Hyacinth Alia, once heralded as a messianic figure with promises of peace, justice, and restoration, now stands accused of Aliashiorkor’ — a concept deeply rooted in betrayal, deception, dereliction of duty, and the collapse of public confidence.

Aliashiorkor’ is no ordinary word. It denotes a betrayal of sacred trust, an abdication of moral and political responsibility, and the transformation of hope into hell. It describes a “false prophet” — a charismatic charlatan whose messiah complex conceals a delusional and dysfunctional approach to governance. The consequence is a government that once inspired belief but now incites disbelief and despair.

Rather than invoking globally recognized frameworks designed to protect human life and dignity, Alia has leaned on outdated and misapplied protocols to justify inaction. In the face of relentless massacres, including the recent bloodshed in Akpete and other parts of Benue State, the governor failed to activate key international conventions such as:

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) – particularly Article 3, which guarantees the right to life, liberty, and security.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) – especially Article 6, which protects the right to life without arbitrary deprivation.

The Geneva Conventions – which offer protections during internal conflicts and demand the safeguarding of civilian populations.

The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Doctrine – which obliges leaders to shield their populations from atrocity crimes, including ethnic cleansing and genocide.

The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide – which mandates action in the face of deliberate attempts to destroy communities.

Rather than leveraging these instruments to confront the armed Fulani incursions, Alia has relied on the archaic protocol of the ECOWAS Charter on the Freedom of Movement — a document never meant to legitimize cross-border armed invasions or protect aggressors from accountability. This selective application of international law betrays not only legal principles but also the moral obligation of leadership.

In a further twist of paradox, the Alia administration invoked the United Nations Protocol on Refugees — not to protect the thousands displaced in Benue’s worsening humanitarian crisis, but to curtail visits from concerned citizens and leaders like His Excellency, former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, who sought to commiserate with internally displaced persons (IDPs) and provide relief. This act was a chilling example of bureaucratic weaponization: using humanitarian instruments not for protection, but for political suppression.

The foregoing is the result of a leadership perceived as having surrendered Benue’s sovereignty and sanctity to bloodshed. Communities lie in ruins, citizens are buried daily, and children languish in IDP camps battling malnutrition and hopelessness. Yet, the administration’s posture signals indifference — or worse, complicity. What ought to be a proactive shield of governance has become a passive corridor for extermination.

This is the essence of Aliashiorkor’ — a betrayal so severe that the governed begin to emotionally and politically disown their governor, just as children reject a father who abandons them in their most vulnerable moments.

Governor Alia’s ascendancy was built on rhetoric that inspired faith. Yet what has followed is a descent into monumental disappointment — a false promise of utopia that has delivered only displacement, hunger, fear, and death. The people of Benue have witnessed their dreams shattered, their hope mocked, and their lives made cheap.

Benue no longer weeps silently. It roars in grief and disbelief — not only over the graves of the slain, but over the broken covenant between a people and the one who vowed to protect them. The paradox of Aliashiorkor’ is complete: a people disowning their political patriarch, not out of rebellion, but out of despair born from betrayal.

Conclusion

The Akpete massacre must not be remembered only as another statistic of Nigeria’s insecurity. It should be remembered as a turning point — the moment when the myth of messianic leadership collapsed under the weight of blood, silence, and shame.

Unless Governor Alia reclaims the moral compass of leadership — by invoking the right international protocols, ending the shielding of aggressors, and restoring the dignity of the people — he will go down not as a saviour, but as the architect of Aliashiorkor’, the tragedy of broken trust, and the father whose children had no choice but to disown him.