Anambra herdsmen attack: need for precautionary measures – Odogwu Media Blog

Six people have been allegedly killed  while about 30 were wounded in a farm settlements at Mmiata Anam, Anambra West Local Government Area, Anambra State, by men suspected to be Fulani herdsmen.

The happened at Agweopia Camp, Iyiogbu Camp and Iyinkolo farm settlements in the early morning of last week Friday  when the farmers were still sleeping.

It was alleged that the rampaging herdsmen killed their victims, burnt houses and raped many women and escaped before information reached the people in the neighboring communities.

Some of the surviving victims are currently receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital while other local farmers living in the farm settlement camps are said to have fled as they are yet to recover from the shock of the horrors of the previous attacks by the killer herdsmen.

The Anglican Bishop of Mbamili Diocese, the  Rt. Rev Henry Okeke has condemned the dastardly.

He described the killings as not only unfortunate but inhuman, adding that it was very unfortunate incident because the people kills were core farmers who are actually cultivating and producing what the people of the state eat and what makes Anambra State the food basket of Nigeria.

Bishop Okeke said the development would adversely affect the economy of Anambra state in particular and the entire Nigeria in general as the Fulani cattle rearers and the farmers have all ran away from their camps.

He noted that Fulani men have been around in the area for some years but that the recent destruction of farms has brought about unhealthy situations and fears to the non violent ones, a situation which according to him must be addressed with utmost alacrity by the Anambra state government and the federal government.

The youths of Anambra West reputable for their hospitable disposition are now poised for war and if the situation is not handled with care, the cordial relationship existing between them and the foreigners would be adversely affected. 

It is instructive to note that the  Anambra West Youth President Mr. John David has promptly urged the youth to remain calm and law abiding noting that the issue will soon be resolved.

While the stakeholders are working round the clock to address the issue at hand, the survivors of the deadly attack have continue to lick their wounds. Some of them have gory tale of the attack and how they miraculously escaped the killer herdsmen.

Meanwhile, the Anambra State Government has announced that the crisis between herdsmen and crop farmers in the Anam community in Anambra West Local Government Area, last week has been resolved.

This claim was contained in a press release signed by the Anambra state Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment Mr C Don Adinuba 

He said the Anambra State Commissioner of Police, the State Director of the Department of State Security, the Commanders of the Army and Naval formations in the state, the state Commandant of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security as well as the Special Assistant to the Governor on Security led other State Security Council members to end the dispute quickly.

Adinuba pointed out that for years Anambra state has adopted a Code of Conduct for herdsmen and crop farmers in the state which has proved exceedingly effective in determining the excellent relations between these groups of people because both the spirit and letter of the Code are widely acknowledged to be just and fair and the implementation done evenhandedly and transparently. The faithful implementation of this Code is considered one of the reasons our state has over the years been free of the clashes between herdsmen and crop farmers experienced in different parts of the country.

He claimed that the media blew the incident out of proportion noting that the media would have done a better job if the journalists who reported the incident had bothered to speak to any government official to obtain the facts and therefore have a fuller picture of what transpired. The state government operates an open door policy and enjoys an excellent relationship with the media.

Since there is a code conduct of how Fulani cattle rearers should relate with the host farmers, one expect that the leaders of the Fulani community to report to the leadership of the host community about the incursion of another sect to the area.

It is gratifying to note that the security agencies were said to be involved in the peace meeting but one begins to wonder where they were when those killer elements entered the community, it is not just enough for the government to brand the media as exaggerating the deadly attack, it is obvious that the security apparatus failed to protect lives and properties just as they have failed in the North East.

It is incumbent on the Anambra state governor, Chief Wille Obiano to think out of the box to protect his people, over reliance on conventional security agencies surely will lead to disaster, Anambra is the most secured state in Nigeria, all hands must be on the deck to protect this status.