Herdsmen attack: Farmer’s escaped death by whisker

A farmer in Edo State attacked by four suspected Fulani herdsmen on Tuesday narrowly escaped death in his farmland at Ubuneke-Ivbiaro, in Owan East local government area.

The farmer simply identified as Bashiru Aliu (50) was attacked by four herdsmen with their machetes, which caused a deep cut on his head.

It could be recalled that suspected herdsmen numbering about six had on May 14, 2018 raped a married woman and beat her husband to pulp at a farm in the same community.

However, the victim, who is currently receiving medical treatment at undisclosed hospital in Auchi, in a telephone chat with newsmen in Benin-City said the incident happened between 9am and 10am.

He remarked that the armed herdsmen attacked him at his plantain farm, while cutting my matured plantain. He said the matter has been reported to Divisional Police Headquarters, Afuze, the administrative headquarters of the council.

He said: “When I was cutting my matured plantain in my farm, I did not know that some herdsmen have laid an ambush somewhere waiting for me to move an inch and suddenly they pounced on me and started using machete on me, saying that they are here to take my life.

“At that point, knowing that it is between life and death, I engaged them in a serious fight and in the process, they cut my head with a machete. I didn’t say anything about it in a minute, when they assumed that I was dead, they ran away. That was how God saved me from their hands.”

Reacting to the incident, the eldest man in Ivbiaro community, Chief Musa Kadiri, called on security agencies to come to the aid of the community, noting that agricultural activities have in the past five years been at its lowest ebb following the armed men attacks.

Kadiri, said, the people,of the community who are mainly farmers no longer go to their various farms as expected as a result of fears of armed men attack.

He also called on the local and state governments to do everything possible to stem the tide of incessant herdsmen attack on farmers in the locality, Owan East local government and the entire state.

Efforts to get reactions from the Executive Chairman of Owan East local government area, Hon. Andrew Osigwe was unsuccessful as calls put across to his mobile phone went unanswered.

Also, when contacted, the image maker of the Edo State Police Command decried to comment on the incident.