Farmers/ Herders Clash: Plotting Roadmap To Peace In Ogun
THE issue of insecurity ravaging Nigeria has manifested in several forms, the most poignant being the conflict between herders and farmers in some parts of the country. Whereas the clashes between nomadic herders and natives of agrarian communities continue to make headlines, efforts by relevant authorities to provide mutually acceptable mediation mechanisms and find a lasting solution to the recurring hostilities have rarely gained traction in the media.
In the midst of the national malady, Ogun State has also had its ugly share. In recent weeks, some parts of Yewa axis of the state have experienced deadly attacks, allegedly carried out by armed Fulani herdsmen. The natives also reportedly fought back.
Several people have lost their lives in the mayhem, while some others sustained injuries. Houses, vehicles, motorcycles and other valuables were also razed. Mostly affected are villages within the Ketu communities, which share border with the Republic of Benin. In Eggua, Oja- Odan, Igan Alade, Gbokoto and Ijoun, Owode- Ketu, Ebutu Igbooro, Imeko Afon and other affected areas, tension has since built up.
However, the timely intervention of Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, appeared to have staved off what could have been a disastrous bloodbath in the state. Despite the subtle attempt in some quarters to politicise the security challenges and spew convoluted narratives, the Abiodun- led administration is leaving no stone unturned in putting an end to incessant feud between herders and farmers in his domain. In furtherance of his commitment, the Governor, last Tuesday, deployed 10 patrol vans and 20 motorcycles in the Yewa axis of the state to check the herders/ farmers’ crisis in the area. The deployment was a follow- up to the Joint Special Security Intervention Squad constituted shortly after the crisis broke out.
At the presentation ceremony held in Abeokuta, the state capital, Abiodun said the measure was a fulfilment of his promise to return peace to the areas affected by the herders/ farmers’ crisis in the Yewa axis. He recalled how he sent a high- powered government delegation to mediate between the two parties, when the crisis broke out a few weeks back, and his promise to support the task force with operational equipment and other necessary logistics. He, therefore, said the presentation of the equipment was a step in making good his promise to support the task force for the success of its assignment. Abiodun noted that the people of the areas, who live close to the border area of the Republic of Benin, usually had difficulties making distress calls in times of trouble. He explained that the state government had been having series of meetings with telecommunication firms, adding that plans were underway to deploy more masts to the areas towards improving communication.
The governor pointed out that the vehicles and motorcycles were meant only for the Yewa axis, saying same measure would be replicated in other parts of the state, if the need arises. Noting that Ogun State was widely known for peace, Abiodun assured that his administration would ensure that anyone found sponsoring or perpetrating crime in the state would be severely dealt with. He advised people of the state to stop ascribing crime to a particular ethnic group, saying, “A criminal is a criminal, regardless of where he comes from.”
The governor observed that proliferation of fake news had also contributed to escalate the herders/ farmers crisis in the area. He
described as falsehood reports that no fewer than 5,000 indigenes of the state had escaped to seek refuge in the Republic of Benin because of the crisis.
Abiodun said: “I wonder who took the census and how that can take place without meetings between Nigeria and the Republic of Benin. Some who came to Abeokuta because of the crisis were provided with free accommodation and so, I wonder why some people would just sit down somewhere and be cooking up untrue stories.”
The Governor disclosed that the state Ministry of Justice had been saddled with the task of ensuring that there were necessary laws to provide for punitive measures against publishers of fake news.
In his remarks, the state Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun, thanked the Governor for fulfilling his promise. He said the measure was a warning signal to perpetrators of violence that hard times await them.
Ajogun assured that all security agencies in the state were committed to restoring peace to the troubled spots, and would do everything within the ambit of the law to achieve the objectives of the task force.
There is no gainsaying that violent clashes between herders from northern Nigeria and farmers in the southern zones have exacerbated ethnic differences in the country in recent years and threatened national security and stability.
Faced by drought and desertification, insecurity across the Sahelian belt and the loss of grazing land in traditional territories, herders have migrated southward in search of pastures and water for their cattle and consequently engaged in dangerous struggle over land with local farmers. As they increase in frequency and intensity, these conflicts have claimed thousands of lives and worsened humanitarian and economic crises. Tens of thousands more have been displaced, while properties, crops and livestock worth billions of naira have also been destroyed in the protracted strife. Access to illicit and smuggled firearms has further
deepened the crisis.
While the crisis appeared to be driving the country on the cliff, the Abiodun- led government in Ogun State commenced the process of finding a lasting solution to the farmerherder crisis in the state. The process first started with a peace mission; a government delegation comprising top officials and representatives of security agencies was sent to the affected areas. It was themed “confidence- building mission.”
Speaking at the palace of the Olu of Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, the state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Hon. Afolabi Afuape, who was part of the government delegation, said there was need for peaceful coexistence in the state.
Afuape noted that though the farmerherder crisis was a national problem, the state government was looking at ways of finding an enduring solution to it, as the incumbent administration was not happy with recent happenings in some parts of the state.
He said: “We have come on the instruction of the State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun to see what can be done to address this crisis. I must stress the need for peaceful coexistence among all our people, irrespective of where you come from. Though this crisis is a national issue, Government is putting security plans in place to secure the lives of our people in this area.”
The commissioner stressed the need for the people to be vigilant by reporting strange faces and movements to security officials. Also speaking, the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Alhaji Abdulwaheed Odusile, appealed to the people not to take laws into their hands, but rather allow the security agencies and the traditional rulers to handle any ugly situation.
While restating the imperative of peaceful co- existence among indigenes and residents from other ethnic groups, Odusile hinted that an all- inclusive stakeholders meeting
was scheduled to hold to find solutions to the problems.
The commissioner appreciated the royal fathers in the area for dousing the tension that arose, due to the attacks from suspected herdsmen, calling for the sharing of necessary information that would lead to the end of the crisis.
The Special Assistant to the Governor on Inter- Ethnic Affairs, Prince Hadi Sani, who spoke in Hausa and Yoruba languages, pleaded with the people to be peaceful, as no meaningful development could take place in a violence- ridden environment.
On his part, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Sola Subair, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police, said a Joint Security Task Force would be stationed in the affected areas, just as he informed that the Amotekun Corp would soon come into being.
In his remarks, the Olu of Ilaro and Paramount Ruler of Yewaland, Oba Kehinde Olugbenle, acknowledged similar challenges in other parts of the country, but added that it was becoming pronounced in the state in recent times. The monarch called for immediate setting up of the Amotekun Corps in the state, while also advocating the involvement of traditional rulers in the selection of the corps’ operatives.
“The State Governor has done well by putting in place mechanism to address this problem. I want to plead with the Governor to commission the Amotekun Corps. When doing this, all critical stakeholders, including the traditional rulers, should be involved in recommending people who know the terrain. Round pegs should be put in round holes,” Oba Olugbenle said.
The monarch, who called for the meeting of all traditional rulers to discuss the issue, suggested the inscription of owners’ names on each cattle, arguing that this would help in identifying the owners in the event of destruction of farms by cattle.
Speaking in his palace, the Eselu of Iselu, Oba Ebenezer Akinyemi, traced the crisis to cattle