A presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Gbenga Hashim, has condemned the recent killings in Woro community, Kwara State, describing the incident as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of rural communities across Nigeria.

Hashim warned that the country risks sliding into an era where mass attacks occur without swift or effective state response, a situation he said poses grave dangers to national stability.

In a statement issued over the weekend, the former presidential candidate said the scale of the attack demands more than expressions of sympathy, calling instead for urgent accountability from security authorities.

“This killing is unprecedented in its scale and unmatched in its barbarity. I offer my condolences to the Woro community, but condolence is not enough this time around,” he said.

Hashim urged the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights to initiate an international investigation into the incident, insisting that Nigerians deserve clarity on why intelligence warnings about the impending attack were allegedly ignored.

According to him, the tragedy highlights how exposed rural populations have become to violent assaults.
“The killings in Woro have demonstrated how easy it is for any group of deranged men to take hundreds of lives without resistance,” he stated.

He raised concerns over the absence of aerial intervention during the attack, arguing that Nigeria’s air capabilities should render claims of remoteness untenable.

Referencing the Nigerian Air Force presence along the Wawa–New Bussa axis, which he said is less than a 15-minute flight from Woro, Hashim questioned why no emergency air support was deployed.

“I hear the unacceptable explanation that it takes hours to access the remote village. So what happened with the Air Force?” he asked.

Hashim further cited what he described as inconsistencies in military responsiveness, recalling past operations beyond Nigeria’s borders.

“The world needs to know why the Air Force that could fly to Benin Republic to save the Beninois President from mutiny could not save the Woro people within the same geographical axis,” he said.

He also criticised the military high command, noting that Nigeria’s armed forces had previously intervened decisively in regional conflicts such as Sierra Leone and Liberia.

“The conduct of the military high command falls short of Nigeria’s standards. Nigeria’s Army stopped killings in Sierra Leone and Liberia before. Why then can it not stop the slaughter of Nigerians in their own communities?” he queried.

Hashim said reports indicated that the attackers had issued prior threats to the community and that authorities were allegedly notified. He also questioned claims that soldiers were deployed but later withdrawn.

“Nigerians deserve to know who ordered that withdrawal and why,” he said.
He described as disturbing reports that security agencies were alerted during the attack but arrived only after the assailants had fled, questioning how nearly 200 people could be killed without arrests or credible information about the perpetrators days later.

Hashim warned that repeated delays in security response were emboldening attackers while widening the trust gap between citizens and the government.

“This is the tragedy of rural Nigeria today. Citizens are attacked, yet the state arrives after the attack, not during the attack,” he said.

He cautioned that persistent failure to protect rural communities could push residents toward self-help measures, including vigilante reprisals, ethnic profiling, and the emergence of unregulated armed groups.

“When communities feel abandoned, they will begin to seek survival outside the state. That is how societies slide into deeper instability,” he warned.

Hashim called on the Federal Government, the Nigerian Air Force, and other security agencies to release a detailed operational account of the incident, including timelines of distress calls, response actions, and explanations for the absence of aerial deployment.

He also advocated reforms aimed at strengthening rural security through rapid-response systems, enhanced aerial surveillance, helicopter deployment, and forward operating bases in vulnerable border areas.

The Woro killings, he added, should not be treated as an isolated incident but as a signal of expanding insecurity across the North Central corridor, particularly communities bordering Niger State and the Kainji Lake region.

Without decisive action, he warned, Kwara State could emerge as a new frontline for banditry and rural terrorism, threatening agriculture, livelihoods, and social stability.

“Nigeria must not normalise massacres. If a village can be attacked for hours and the state still cannot respond, then we are facing a serious national emergency,” Hashim said.