By Ademola Adegbite

IBADAN—OKE Ogun Council of Elders, OCE, in Oyo State, yesterday, raised alarm over the invasion of Fulani herders in the region, calling on the Federal and state governments to beef up security in the area.

The council also decried the situation in which, when farmers and herders have clashes, security agencies, especially the Police, tend to take sides with the herders, even when the farmer was the victim. 

Rising from its mid-year meeting, held in Ibadan under the Chairmanship of the council’s President, Mr. Bamidele Dada, former minister of State for Agriculture and Water Resources, the elders urged the government to be more proactive by equipping security agencies more and enforcing anti-open grazing law that was promulgated in 2020.

In a communiqué by its spokesman, Mr Jare Ajayi, the OCE said: “The Council took note of the alarm raised by the former Director of Military Intelligence and current Chairman of the Oyo State Security Network, Amotekun, General Kunle Togun (retd) on the influx of foreign Fulani Bororo, who seem bent on taking over many lands in Nigeria, particularly in the South West.  

“Togun, for the umpteenth time, raised the alarm while delivering a paper titled ‘Security Challenges: ‘The Significance of Regional Security Dimensions,’ organised by the Institute for Peace and Strategic Studies, IPSS, Students’ Association, University of Ibadan not long ago. His view was corroborated by the pioneer and current directors of the institute, Professors Isaac Olawale Albert and Tajudeen Akanji. The Oke-Ogun Elders expressed serious concern on this matter because Oke Ogun, which they represent, is one of the focal areas that the foreign marauders are using as an entry point into Nigeria.

“The Council also took note of incidents of kidnapping for ransom largely being perpetrated by suspected Fulani terrorists.  

Various steps being taken to confront the security challenges were also considered.

“After exhaustive deliberation, the Council resolved that the extant insecurity situation in the area is hampering smooth socio-economic activities particularly agricultural practices and commercial activities that involve moving from one location to another.”

“The elders maintained that clashes between Fulani herders and farmers are still on. It is regrettable that when such incidents occur, farmers are always at the receiving end. This takes the form of farmers being penalized even when the farmer is the victim. Instances abound in which when, for instance, a cow ate tubers or grains sprayed with chemicals on a farm and something happened to the cattle, the farmer would be forced to pay for the dead cow even when it was the cattle that came to the farm. In this respect, security agencies, especially the Police, are called upon to ensure fairness and justice in their handling of farmers/herders clashes.”