Sai, Mbajir, in Katsina-Ala Local Government Area of Benue State, is one of the historic centres of Christianity, education, and civilization in Tivland. For generations, it has served as a beacon of faith, peace, and community development, largely through the pioneering work of the Dutch Reformed Christian Mission, which introduced education, healthcare, and Christian evangelism that transformed the lives of countless people across the region.

Today, however, this historic community faces a prolonged crisis of insecurity and institutional neglect that threatens its people, heritage, and future.

For more than a decade, the Sai Divisional Police Station has remained inactive, symbolizing years of institutional neglect. Without an effective security presence, the community has become increasingly vulnerable to violent attacks, criminality, displacement, and the loss of lives and livelihoods. Families live in fear, economic activities have declined, and many ancestral residents have been forced to abandon the community they call home.

Sai occupies a strategic location along the Benue–Taraba border, making its security a shared responsibility of the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Government of Benue State, and the Government of Taraba State.

Recognizing this, the Governments of Benue and Taraba States convened a Joint Security Meeting at the Federal University, Wukari, on 29 December 2018. The meeting, chaired by the then Governors, Dr. Samuel Ortom and Arc. Darius Dickson Ishaku, brought together security agencies, traditional rulers, and key stakeholders from both states. Following inspection visits to Abako, Sai, and Dogon-Gawa, the meeting adopted eight resolutions to strengthen peace and security along the border communities.

Importantly, Resolution 7 provided that joint security forces be constituted with a police station in Sai, recognizing the town's strategic importance in safeguarding peace and stability along the Benue–Taraba border.

The urgency of these commitments was reaffirmed on 3 March 2026, when the Governors of Benue State, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia (PhD), and Taraba State, Dr. Agbu Kefas, led high-level delegations to Wukari to review the persistent insecurity affecting communities along the Benue–Taraba border. Following the meeting, the delegations visited Abako in Benue State and Chanchanji in Taraba State to meet internally displaced persons and assess conditions on the ground.

During the visit, both governments committed themselves to strengthening security, improving educational infrastructure, extending electricity to underserved communities, providing potable water, and delivering relief materials to internally displaced persons. These commitments reaffirmed the shared responsibility of both states to restore peace, safety, and development to the affected border communities.

Despite these commitments in 2018 and 2026, the people of Sai continue to endure recurring attacks, displacement, destruction of property, and inadequate public infrastructure. The prolonged absence of a fully functional police station and other essential government services has left the community exposed and vulnerable, undermining public confidence and delaying socio-economic development.

This petition is therefore not a call for new promises. Rather, it is a respectful but urgent appeal for the implementation of commitments that governments have already publicly acknowledged and undertaken.

We respectfully call upon:
The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria;
The Federal Government of Nigeria;
The Government of Benue State;
The Government of Taraba State;
The Inspector-General of Police;
The Nigeria Police Force;
The Chief of Defence Staff and all relevant security agencies;
The National Boundary Commission;
The Chairman, Katsina-Ala Local Government Council;
The Member representing Katsina-Ala, Ukum and Logo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives;
The Member representing Katsina-Ala East State Constituency in the Benue State House of Assembly; and
All relevant Ministries, Departments, and Agencies responsible for security, infrastructure, humanitarian affairs, rural development, and peacebuilding
to urgently:

1. Rehabilitate and Operationalize the Sai Divisional Police Station
Immediately rehabilitate, equip, staff, and fully operationalize the Sai Divisional Police Station, in fulfilment of the commitment contained in the 29 December 2018 Benue–Taraba Joint Security Communiqué, with adequate personnel, operational vehicles, communication equipment, accommodation, and logistics.

2. Strengthen Security in Sai and Border Communities
Deploy sufficient security personnel and establish a permanent joint security architecture for Sai and neighbouring border communities to prevent recurring attacks, protect lives and property, improve intelligence gathering, and strengthen interstate security collaboration between Benue and Taraba States.

3. Implement Outstanding Government Commitments
Fully implement all outstanding resolutions arising from the 2018 Benue–Taraba Joint Security Meeting and the commitments reaffirmed during the 3 March 2026 joint security engagement, particularly those relating to security, humanitarian assistance, electricity, education, potable water, and other essential public services.

4. Restore Critical Public Infrastructure
Reconstruct and upgrade critical infrastructure in Sai and surrounding communities, including roads, electricity, potable water systems, schools, healthcare facilities, telecommunications, and other essential public institutions necessary for sustainable development.

5. Ensure Justice and Accountability
Establish an independent and transparent investigation into the recurring attacks on Sai and neighbouring communities, ensuring that perpetrators, collaborators, and sponsors are identified, prosecuted, and held accountable in accordance with the law.

6. Support Victims and Rebuild Lives
Provide comprehensive humanitarian assistance, compensation, psychosocial support, rehabilitation, and sustainable livelihood programmes for victims, internally displaced persons, widows, orphans, and affected households, while facilitating the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of displaced residents.

7. Establish a Sustainable Peace and Development Framework
Develop and implement a long-term Sai Border Communities Peace, Security, and Development Plan, incorporating community policing, early warning and early response systems, youth employment and skills development, agricultural support, conflict prevention, and sustained collaboration among government institutions, traditional rulers, religious leaders, women, youth organizations, civil society organizations, and development partners.

Sai has made immense contributions to the religious, educational, and social development of Tivland and remains a strategic gateway between Benue and Taraba States. Protecting Sai is therefore not only a local responsibility but also a regional and national imperative for peace, security, and sustainable development.

This petition is not about politics. It is about protecting lives, restoring confidence in public institutions, honouring commitments already made by government, and ensuring that the people of Sai and neighbouring communities can live in peace, security, and dignity.

We respectfully urge all levels of government, elected representatives, security agencies, and development partners to act without further delay. Every day of inaction prolongs the suffering of innocent citizens and weakens confidence in public institutions.

By signing this petition, you are standing for justice, security, accountability, and sustainable development. You are lending your voice to a community that has contributed immensely to our shared history and deserves equal protection under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Please sign this petition and share it widely. Together, we can ensure that the commitments made in 2018 and reaffirmed in 2026 are translated into concrete action. The people of Sai, Mbajir deserve security, justice, peace, and development—not continued institutional neglect.