By Amos Aar
STUDENTS of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo (FUHSO), Benue State, on Saturday evening fled the campus in panic following rumours that suspected armed herders had attacked a neighbouring community and were likely to also invade the institution.
A student who spoke to our correspondent but pleaded anonymity for lack of authority to speak with the press, said the panic started at about 5pm when reports went viral that a Fulani man’s cow had been killed in the nearby community, causing villagers to flee en mass.
This mass exodus, the student explained, caused fear among students who assumed an attack was imminent.
“Earlier this evening around 5pm, students started running. People were packing their things and leaving. The rumour was that a Fulani’s cow had been killed and the villagers were already running. But the situation wasn’t as tense as what we experienced early this year.”
The student explained that the confusion worsened when villagers were seen fleeing from other surrounding communities, prompting many students to follow suit.
According to the student, the school authorities later intervened to calm the situation. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic, Prof. Godwin Okibe, addressed the remaining students, assuring them that there was no cause for alarm.
“The school authority came and addressed us. They said the information came from security agencies, who reported that the military was carrying out operations in villages around the school. They said the herders had already been driven out of the surrounding areas.
“When the villagers saw some of them returning briefly to pick up their possessions in the bush, they misunderstood it and started running again. That was what caused the panic,” the student added.
National Record however gathered that despite the explanation by Prof. Okibe, the sense of fear and siege was not fully allayed as many students, especially those who had relations in Otukpo Town, still temporally relocated some with their mates to pass the night.
Saturday’s incident is not the first time FUHSO students panicked over alleged threats of attacks by suspected herders. A similar situation occurred on February 5, 2025, when there was reported attack on a nearby community of Okpamaju in Otukpo LGA.
