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Save Us From ‘Killer Herdsmen’, Edo Communities Appeal To Obaseki

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Natives of communities in Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo State have appealed to governor of the state, Mr. Godwin Obaseki to save them from “killer herders.”

They appealed to the Governor to, as a matter of urgency, give a matching order to all relevant security agencies to mobilise their men to the communities and forest with a view to “flushing out these herdsmen, thereby restoring peace to the land.”

The residents who came under the auspices of ‘Save Ovia Group’ to protest the incessant invasion and killing of natives of these communities by herdsmen, carried placards with various inscriptions as: ‘Obaseki, wake up. It is not cows that voted for you’; ‘Sorrow, pains, hunger, tears in our land’; ‘Owners of cows are owners of AK-47’, etc, matched to the premises of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Edo State council’s secretariat.

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A letter titled ‘Save Our Soul’, signed by Mr. Johnbull Ewaremi on behalf of the natives of the concerned communities, and addressed to Obaseki, said the appeal becomes necessary, lamenting that they have become refuge in their own land.

The letter reads in part: “Lately, we have come under heavy attacks from herdsmen who came to sack the dwellers of some of the communities, burnt houses, destroyed household properties, burnt farms, caused their herds to feed on our farm produce.

“As these were not enough, they have continued their unwholesome mindlessness by killing, maiming, raping of innocent farmers who are out to seek for daily bread.

“As we speak now, there is no single soul in Abumwenre II and Igolo communities because these marauders have vowed to kill anyone who steps in there, and have also made these communities their camps.

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“It will interest you to know Your Excellency that people from these communities mentioned are now IDPs in other neighboring villages as they have had to scamper for their safety. Our people are faced with untold hunger, frustration and hopelessness becausethey can not go to their farms.where they have sown.”

Receiving the protesters at the premises of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, chairman of the council, Festus Alenkhe sympathised with them and called on the Edo State House of Assembly to pass into law the anti-open-grazing billing into law in the state.

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Tragedy Struck In Osun As Three siblings, Mother Die In Auto Crash

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Three siblings and their mother, identified as Cecilia were reported dead in a ghastly auto accident in Osun State on Saturday.

It was gathered that a car heading to Ibadan from Osogbo had a head-on collision with a motorcycle carrying a woman and four of her children back home from a vigil at Odeomu in Ayedaade local government area.

According to an eye witness Usman Ademola, the motorcyclist carried two of the children in front, another one in the middle while a toddler was wrapped behind the woman.

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According to VANGUARD, the two children died on the spot in the incident that occurred between Odeomu and Oogi where the motorcycle was headed.

Also, the woman and the motorcyclist identified as Abraham died while the child behind the woman seems to have survived the incident.

Meanwhile, it was gathered that a mob that gathered at the scene set the car ablaze along with two of the occupants after the driver had escaped from the scene.

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READ ALSO: Three Children Rescued As Fire Guts Storey Building In Delta

Osun police command spokesperson, SP Yemisi Opalola added that the two occupants were rescued from the car by police operatives and were rushed to a hospital in the state capital.

She added that policemen were deployed to the area to maintain peace and order.

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Soldiers, Traders Clash In Abuja Market

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The Federal Capital Territory Police Command has deployed its operatives to Banex – an electronics and telecommunications gadgets market, in Abuja, after a fight broke out between soldiers and some traders on Saturday.

Some civilians were seen in a viral video overpowering some soldiers in a fight at the popular market, while some scampered for safety over the fear of reprisals.

The Defence Headquarters, and the spokesperson for the Nigerian Army, Onyema Nwachukwu could not be reached for comments as of press time.

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A source present at the scene of the pandemonium said the fight occurred over the sale of a mobile phone.

There’s a problem at Banex now. Some soldiers came to complain about a phone, and during an argument with the traders, a fight ensued,” the witness said.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, SP Josephine Adeh disclosed that the Commissioner of Police, Benett Igweh has deployed officers of the FCT Intelligence Response Team to the scene of the incident.

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Okuama/Okoloba Impasse: Women Protest In Black Attire, Raise Issues [PHOTOS]

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The protesting women of Okoloba community

Protesters who are majorly women from Okoloba community, Delta State, on Saturday, May 18, 2024, took to the street to protest what they called the return of armed youths of Okuama in Ughelli South Local Government Area of the state.

INFO DAILY reports that Okoloba community in Bomadi Local Government Area and Okuama community in Ughelli South Local Government Area, all in Delta State have been at loggerhead over land dispute and others.

The protesting Okoloba women in black attire staged the peaceful protest along the coastal fringe of Koloba community, chanting against violence and bloodbath.

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The placard carrying women, led by the chairlady of Okoloba Community, Mrs Timipakebi Goodwin, and secretary, Mrs Mary Koibi, alleged that the armed youths of Okuama were threatening the peace of the riverine area.

Some of the protesting Women

READ ALSO: Delta Bloodbath: Relief As Army Withdraws Soldiers From Okuama Community

Some inscriptions on the placards read: ‘We say no to violence’; ‘enough of the killings on our land;’ ‘armed Okuama youths returning in a commando style;’ ‘we say no to the return of armed youths of Okuama;’ ‘resettle Okuama people among their Ewu brothers in Ughelli South LGA;’ ‘we mourn the killing of the 17 soldiers,’ among others.’

Reading a letter to newsmen, a copy of each she said was submitted to the police, DSS, NSCDC, JTF as well as the acting chairman of Bomadi Local local Government Council, Mrs Goodwin noted that the latest killing by the youths of Okuama showed that they could kill human beings at the slightest provocation.

The letter which contained an S.O.S. to the Federal Government, further reads: “First, we the women of Okoloba Community sympathize with the killing of 17 soldiers and officers of the Nigerian army on peace and rescue mission to Okuama, following the kidnap of our son. We sincerely mourn their untimely death and pray for the repose of their souls. We also pray for their families.

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The protesting women

“However, less than 24 hours after the exit of the troops from Okuama, a fresh crisis erupted with another neighbouring community, culminating in the killing of one person while three other persons were seriously injured. The person who was killed and those sustaining machete wounds were alleged to have gone there to loot.

READ ALSO: One Killed, 3 Wounded As Communal Crisis Rocks Okuama After Withdrawal Of Soldiers

“The latest killing showed that the people of Okuama can kill a human at the slightest provocation; the sanctity of human life means nothing to them. It also shows that neighbouring Ijaw communities like Okoloba are not safe.

“So, resetting the people of Okuama in their present location, which is in-between communities in Bomadi Local Government Area, is an attempt to encourage further communal clashes and bloodbaths.

“Just last week, youths of Okuama Community came out of the Mein-toruabubor creek, which leads to Ewu, on three speedboats and all of them on camouflage. They shot sporadically in the air before proceeding to OKuama. They moved to and fro the creek three times, and at every time they shot their guns in the air at the entrance of the creek.

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“We are calling on the federal government to come to our aid, and the panacea to these incessant clashes and killings is for the government to relocate Okuama to Ewu clan in Ughelli South Local Government Area, where they truly and rightly belong.

“Resettling them among their own people in Ewu clan of Urhobo land will foster mutual trust among themselves as they are of the same ancestry and speak the same dialect”.

 

 

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