BREAKING: Herdsmen strike in Ondo, kill one

Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen have killed a cousin of the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu on New Media, Gani Muhammed.

The deceased identified as Dayo Ibiye was killed on his farm at Ajowa Akoko, Ondo State.

Speaking to SaharaReporters, Muhammed said, “Three days ago, Dayo, who was my first cousin, went to his farm and met some Fulani herdsmen around the area, so he told them not to come towards his farm but to his surprise, they told him they would come to the farm and he would not do anything. This led to an alteration between him and the herdsmen. They warned him after that not to come to his farm again, that was three days ago.

“So today, he went to his farm. Before you know it, those Fulani showed up at the farm. The person with him, on sighting them, ran away. Before the police and other villagers could get there, he had been killed. We met his lifeless body on the farm.”

Muhammed added that the remains of the deceased had been deposited at the morgue.

The incident happened a few weeks after the state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, ordered herdsmen to vacate the state’s forest reserves within seven days.

Apart from ejecting the herdsmen, the governor also banned underage grazing, night grazing, and movement of cattle within the cities and on highways.

He had said, “Today, we have taken major steps at addressing the root cause of kidnapping, in particular, and other nefarious activities detailed and documented in security reports, the press, and debriefings from victims of kidnap cases in Ondo State.

“As the chief law and security officer of the state, it is my constitutional obligation to do everything lawful to protect the lives and property of all residents of the state. In light of the foregoing, the following orders are hereby issued: All forest reserves in the state are to be vacated by herdsmen within the next seven days with effect from today, Monday, January 18, 2021.”

The issue generated an uproar and after a meeting with different stakeholders, Akeredolu asked herdsmen to register with the government so that they can operate unhindered in the forest reserves.