Palpable fear has reportedly gripped the people of Aboji Akanano Oba, Idemili South Local Government Area, Anambra State over alleged menace of suspected Fulani herdsmen in their community.
Addressing newsmen on the development, the President General of the Community, Nze Dozie Nweke described them as, Boko Haram members in disguise adding “they use animals to perfect their mission at odd hours, between 1:00 to 3:30am on invading any of their targeted community”.
He said, “just recently, as they were passing with their cattle in the wee hours, in Oba, they came to where water was stored in tanks for commercial purpose and one of their children, aged about 10, opened the tap for the cattle to take water from the tanks and all the water stored got wasted”.
“When the owner heard the noise he opened his window from his storey building to know what was amiss but was warned to get in or be killed and the owner had no other option than to get inside and kept his calm”, he said.
“Another incident was when they entered the expansive compound of a former Hon member of the State House of Assembly, and damaged the parameter fence and economic crops therein”.
“A man who tried to query them escaped death by whiskers as one of them shot him twice but he dodged and alerted some villagers who came and arrested the gunman.
In the process the gunman called a soldier brother from Army Barracks in Onitsha and on arrival the soldier wanted to intimidate the villagers until the villagers threatened to report his illegal mission to his authority and he there and then begged for forgiveness and was forgiven”, he revealed.
The President General said that grazing is a private business and wondered why the Federal Government should come up with a bill on that.
“They should rear their cows in ranch and sell them to the consumers from the ranch. Down here in Oba we don’t allow our goats to enter another person’s farm or the owner will pay fine”, he stated.
“We have never heard of Fulani herdsmen being armed until President Muhammadu Buhari came on board as President.
Our farm produce are valued like their cows so why should they damage ours”, he said.
Nze Nweke urged leaders and traditional rulers to always know the type of herdsmen in their community to avoid bringing in criminals who will torment the people.
He also called on youths to look for something doing to avoid acts capable of dragging their image to the mud and avoid drug addiction.