Some suspected Fulani Herdsman dressed in military uniform reportedly on Sunday invaded a farming community, 2nd Abumere Ojigbelu Camp in Ovia Northeast Local Government Area of Edo State.
The marauders reportedly chased the villagers away, taking over their farms, homes, and properties.
Some of the villagers who ran away for their lives and now taking refugee in other communities around Okada narrate their ordeal
According to one of the victims Mr. Mattu Alli, from Taraba State said: “In fact, I’m short of words to explain what I witness yesterday in our community. I have been here for the past 20 years with my family, farming. I was in my compound with my family having a good time when we started to hear the sound of guns and people running in different directions, I saw one Benin man running towards my compound I ask him where are you running to,he said herdsmen have taken over the village chasing people away from their houses.
“So I called my wife and we have to run for our lives. I did not see my children every one of us ran in a different direction. As I speak to you now, I don’t know the whereabouts of my wife and children”.
“Another thing that put fears into our minds is that one of the Fulani Herdsmen pointed a gun at me and said look man we are for peace, we would only kill you, people, if you refuse to allow our cows to feed on your crops. The yams you people have are for our cows, the cassava and all that you have are for our cows. If you people touch our cows we will kill everybody in this village
For us to be saved we ran to the next community.”
Another victim who also spoke with journalist Mr. Sunday Chimen said:
” I have been in this village for over 20 years plus farming, what we saw yesterday surprised us, suddenly we heard gunshots and people running, we later discovered that Fulani Herdsmen have taken over our community with sophisticated AK 47 and threatening to kill us if we didn’t cooperate with them for us to be alive, we decided to run for our dear lives leaving our properties with our children running to unknown places”.
“We are calling on the security agencies to come to our aid as our community is under siege.”
One of the affected women Mrs.Ngozi Chimen said:
“The nefarious activities of these Fulani Herdsmen have been on in our community since last two months, they enter into our farms put our plantain to feed their cows. Chase us away from farms. You dear do not look at their faces. Some of them are in Army uniforms. Just on the 2nd of January 2022, they invaded our village and chase everybody away. We need help, we security we need government assistant.”
When contacted, Edo State Police Command Public Relations Officer, SP kantongs Bello, said he has not been briefed on the development.
However, he promised to get back as soon as he finished speaking with the Division Police Officer in charge of the area but was yet to do so as at press time.