In Oyo, herdsmen cut off farmer’s fingers

A farmer identified as Mr. John Akin, has become the latest victim of rampaging herders’ attack as his two fingers were chopped off on his farm at Ilowa Gbade Village in Atiba local government area of Oyo State.

Reports revealed that the victim was working on his cassava farm when the herders reared their cows on his farm and began to destroy his crops.

Akin, worried by the invasion, pleaded with the herders to swiftly move the cattle out of the farm, but his objection infuriated the herders who pounced on him and cut off two of his fingers.

An eyewitness said the incident has thrown the village into apprehension as concerned residents continued to express worries over the violent invasion of their farms and communities.

Our correspondent learnt that one of the herdsmen was apprehended and subsequently handed over to the Atiba Division of the Oyo State Police Command, where he was being detained for interrogation.

There has been apprehension among residents of Atiba local government who have complained about alleged invasion of the Old Oyo National Park and nearby forests by terrorists of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Just on Thursday, Oyo State governor, Engr Seyi Makinde, vowed that the state would not welcome errant herdsmen, bandits and other criminals who were moving from the Northern part of the country into the South-West.

Governor Makinde, who disclosed this in his monthly newsletter, stated this following the outcome of a meeting held with security chiefs on the measures to curtail threats posed by herders and terror elements in the state.

“One thing is certain, Oyo State will not welcome such criminals. We will push back to ensure that they are flushed out of our State. And so, our deliberation today (Thursday) was about the strategies we will deploy and the roles that we all should be playing to ensure that we continue to keep our dear State safe and secure.

“We must do whatever it takes to protect the relative peace that has helped us grow our State’s GDP by over 50% since 2019,” Governor Makinde had said.

Residents have appealed to Governor Makinde and security agencies in the state to speed up their game against the criminals to prevent a full-blown crisis.