Elephants destroy farmland, injure farmer in Ogun — Lawmaker raises alarm

A member of the Ogun House of Assembly, Mr Sola Adams, has raised alarm over the destruction of farmlands by elephants which also attacked and injured a farmer at Itashin in Ijebu East Local Government Area of the state.

The lawmaker who spoke under personal explanation during plenary in Abeokuta, noted that the recent incident where elephants attacked villagers in his constituency remained worrisome.

The lawmaker stated that the injured farmer was receiving treatment at Ijebu Ode General Hospital, calling on the relevant agency to do the needful and return the elephants to where they should be.

Responding, Mr Olakunle Oluomo, the Speaker, condemned the destruction of elephants into farmland to the extent of injuring a farmer.

The speaker advised farmers to stop further encroachment on the natural habitat of elephants, which had now left their habitat to attack people and destroy farmlands.

According to him, the issue of elephants’ incursion into town which occurred at Itasin in Ijebu East, required the state Ministries of Agriculture and Forestry to engage the Nigerian Conservative Foundation.

”This is towards preserving the species and the entire ecosystem,” he said.

Also during the plenary, the speaker challenged the Special Adviser to the State Governor on Security Matters, Mr Olusola Subair, to explore the State Security Trust Fund for the procurement of more security apparatus across the state.

The speaker added that there was a need to procure more security apparatus, especially the riverine areas to beef up the security of lives and property of residents.

He made the call while responding to the submission of his Deputy, Akeem Balogun and Deputy Chief Whip, Olusola Adams.

The lawmakers spoke on the need to tighten security around the border areas with Lagos and the Ondo States, especially around Ode-Omi, Iwopin in Ogun Waterside and Imobi in Ijebu East Local Government Areas, respectively.