Tension In Oyo Community As Ultimatum To Herdsmen Expires Today

There is palpable fear among residents of Igangan in the Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State as the seven-day ultimatum given to herdsmen in the community to leave expires today.

An Indigene of the area popularly known as Sunday Igboho had visited igangan community where the Seriki Fulani of Oyo State, Saliu Abdul Kadri resides, and gave him and other herdsmen seven day to vacate.

Igboho said the people could no longer live with them, accusing the Fulani of being behind the series of kidnappings, killings, rape and other violent crimes against the Yoruba people in the area.

This led to an intense altercation and the Oyo State Police Command later said four persons were injured during the incident.

The Fulani people were also accused of attacking four farmers returning from farm on the same day. One of the victims, Seun Isaiah, said Fulani men living in the community attacked him and three others who were riding on the same motocycle. Isaiah was rumoured to have died due to the way his assailants open a part of his head with cutlass but he miraculously survived.

Residents of the area told our correspondent that a joint security team codenamed Operation Burst had intensified patrol in the town ahead of the expiration of the ultimatum.

Also, vigilante groups in the town were said to have patrolled on Thursday night till Friday morning

One of the residents, who spoke on condition of anonimity said, ” We don’t know what will happen on Friday, the quit notice will expire but the governor has warned Igboho and others against evicting the Fulani.

“But these Fulani people are behind the insecurity in the area. Those kidnapped and released after payment of ransom said herdsmen kidnapped them. Farmers complain that herdsmen plunder their farms and attack them. Something must be done to stop these attacks.

“The governor cannot sit in Ibadan and be giving orders while he does nothing about the daily attack against the Indigenes. Can anyone go to Sokoto or Kano and be oppressing Fulani people there?”

Governor Seyi Makinde has warned against evicting the Fulani in a statewide broadcast on Wednesday. He said the enemies of the people were criminals and not Fulani people.

The new Commissioner of Police in the state, Ngozi Onadeko, in a statement on Friday morning warned against any act of lawlessness.

He said the police had restrategized while promising adequate security for the people of the state.

The statement read, “This is to inform the good people of Oyo State that the Commissioner of Police, Oyo State Police Command, CP. Ngozi Onadeko, psc, mnim, fdc, has keenly followed development and statement, emanating from different individuals, regarding security situation in the “state.

“The Oyo State Police Command would like to associate itself with the position of His Excellency, Governor Oluseyi Makinde fnse the Executive Governor of Oyo State, on the need for the good people of Oyo State to be calm and peaceful, as well as desist from taking laws into their hands.

“The commissioner of police would like to assure the peace loving people of Oyo State that necessary strategies have been put in place, in collaboration with other security agencies in the state, to ensure that all residents of Oyo State are free go about their lawful businesses and duties, without threat or hindrance.

“The police command with the support of sister security agencies wishes to state emphatically that anyone who engage in any disturbance of the peace or any act of criminality will be brought to justice.”