Benue Government Disburses N50,000 To Each Family In Yelewata Ravag£d By Bandits Att∆cks
Benue Government Disburses N50,000 To Each Family In Yelewata Ravaged By Bandits Attacks
The government said each of the 1000 households received N50,000 as part of a cash transfer intervention
The Benue State government says it has disbursed N56million to 1000 households affected by last year’s deadly attack on Yelewata community, even as questions mount over the management of N1.275billion in donations received for victims of the massacre.
The government said each of the 1000 households received N50,000 as part of a cash transfer intervention.
Yelewata, a border community in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, was attacked in June 2025 by suspected armed herdsmen.
The assault reportedly left over 200 people dead and displaced thousands of residents, many of whom were camped at the International Market in Makurdi.
Briefing journalists in Makurdi on Monday, the Chairman of the Technical Committee for the Implementation of Donations to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Deborah Aber, said the attack drew national attention, including a visit by President Bola Tinubu.
Aber, who also serves as Secretary to the State government, said following the president’s visit, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu donated N1billion to support displaced persons in the state.
She added that additional donations were received from the Nasarawa State government, which contributed N150million; United Bank for Africa, which donated N100million; and the Director-General of the Department of State Services, who gave N25million.
According to Aber, the total donations amounted to N1.275billion.
She said the state governor constituted a committee to ensure transparency and accountability in the utilisation of the funds and appointed her to chair it.
However, observers have raised concerns over the disparity between the N56 million reportedly disbursed directly to households and the N1.275billion received in donations, calling for detailed public accounting of how the balance has been spent or earmarked.
The government has yet to release a comprehensive breakdown of expenditures tied to the donations.
