By Ben Atonko
One year after armed attackers stormed Yelewata in the dead of night, killing 276 farmers in their sleep, the scars in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State remain fresh.
Grief still hangs over the community, etched into the faces of widows, orphans and survivors who returned to the site of the massacre on Saturday for a memorial service organised by the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi.
But while many leaders stayed away, one man was there, kneeling with the bereaved, praying with the broken and speaking truth to power.
That man is Prof. Sebastine Tar. Hon SAN, the Social Democratic Party (SDP)’s governorship candidate in Benue State.
As tears flowed freely and sorrowful hymns filled the air, Prof. Hon offered prayers for the repose of the dead and for healing for those maimed in the attack.
He urged governments at all levels to be vigilant and to act decisively to prevent another Yelewata.
His presence was not ceremonial. It was pastoral, it was human and it was political in the best sense: leadership that shows up.
The contrast was hard to miss. Governor Hyacinth Alia and his officials were absent from the memorial mass. No explanation was given.
In a state still bleeding from repeated attacks, absence at a moment of collective mourning speaks louder than any press release. Prof. Hon’s decision to be present spoke louder still.
The SDP candidate has consistently argued that security is not an abstract policy document but a sacred duty.
At Yelewata, he aligned himself with the voices demanding justice and practical solutions.
He echoed Bishop Wilfred Chikpa Anagbe’s rejection of resettling internally displaced persons outside their ancestral homes.
The return of the our people to their land is the only sustainable option. For a farming community like Yelewata, land is not just property. It is identity, livelihood and heritage.
Prof. Hon’s stance sets him apart in a political season often defined by cautious rhetoric.
He has called the Yelewata killings what Bishop Anagbe called them: not skirmishes, not a byproduct of climate change, but genocide.
He has refused to sanitize the pain of his people for political convenience. That kind of clarity matters in a state where communities have been attacked for hours unchallenged, even not far away from the seat of power.
His appearance at the memorial also underscored his respect for institutions and voices that have stood with Benue State in its darkest hour.
He publicly commended a US based organization Equipping the Persecuted and a legal practitioner Franc Utoo for raising the 22-foot Yelewata Genocide Memorial Wall.
He reserved special praise for Bishop Anagbe, describing him as a shepherd who has shown uncommon fidelity to the suffering Church in Benue State.
“While many have chosen silence, Bishop Anagbe has consistently spoken the truth.
“While others have looked away, he has stood with the bereaved, mourned with grieving families and carried the pain of our communities as his own,” said Prof. Hon.
In saying that, he revealed his own model of leadership: not aloof, not defensive but present, compassionate and courageous.
The SDP guber candidate said his campaign has been built on the premise that Benue State deserves leadership that confronts problems head-on, protects lives and restores dignity to communities long neglected.
As the memorial service ended at 2:16 p.m. with the sanctification of the cenotaph bearing the names of the 276 dead, Prof. Hon prayed that God would continue to bless and strengthen Bishop Anagbe and that the souls of the martyrs would intercede for Benue State.
It was a prayer, but also a promise: that the memory of Yelewata will not be buried and that under his watch, the dead will not have died in vain.
In a state hungry for leaders who feel the pain of their people, Prof. Sebastine Hon’s appearance in Yelewata was more than a visit.
It was a statement of who he is and who he intends to be as governor.
