By Priscilla Pwadivi
The crisis brewing between farmers and Fulani herdsmen over a period of time, on Thursday erupted into violence in Epogi, a riverine community in Mokwa Local Government area of Niger State, killing 21 persons.
The herdsmen, it was reported, stormed the village mosque with guns at dawn and gruesomely murdered the worshippers during their early morning prayers.
The people of Epogi, who are mainly into fishing, swerved into dry season fishing due to dwindling availability of fishes, and reached an understanding with their neighbours, the Fulani herdsmen that came to settle in the area, as to allow them (farmers) harvest their crops, majorly rice, before moving their animals to graze on the land.
But it was said that the herdsmen most times were impatient and usually end up releasing their cattle to graze on the farmlands, destroying the crops.
The farmers, it was gathered, were not happy with the situation. This led to tension between the two sides and the subsequent attacks that led to loss of lives.
The friction continued, up until, last Saturday morning when the herdsmen unleashed terror on the community that resulted in the death of 20 villagers and a few others in the adjourning communities.
Reacting on the issue, a communiyy leader in the troubled Epogi village, Alhaji Abubakar Taoheed Tahir, attributed the various violence that rocked various parts of the country between farmers and Fulani cattle rearers to the advent of dry season farming.
He said it is largely responsible for the incessant herdmen/ farmers clashes currently ravaging the country.
Tahir during an on-the-spot assessment of the extent of damage of the Fulani invasion of the village told journalists that the whole problem started, when the fishermen went into dry season farming to make ends meet as it was becoming difficult, depending on the fish trade for their livelihood.
According to him, ” Our community is predominantly a fishing one but, when it was becoming hard to make ends meet with fishing, our people decided to take advantage of the dry season farming.
Unfortunately, the Fulani people who had stayed in the community were predominantly cattle rearers. This led to the villagers demanding that the Fulani should allow the them harvest their rice and other farm produce before taking the animals out for grazing.”
He explained that the Fulani unfortunately, were always impatient to keep to the agreement as they allowed their animals to destroy the crops of the local people.
The state Police Commissioner, Zubairu Muazu, speaking to newsmen, decried the killings, describing it as inhuman, even as he assured that all the perpetrators of the heinous crime would be arrested and brought to book.
He urged the local people to come forward and volunteer information capable of leading to the arrest of the criminals.