Farmers and other residents of Ikoyi-Ile in the Orire Local Government Area of Oyo State have urged the state government to intervene in the alleged criminal activities of cattle herders in their community before the matter gets out of control.

According to the farmers, some herdsmen come to the community to vandalise their farmlands with their cattle.

The farmers claimed that the herders often terrorise the community and sometimes kill and maim their members and relatives.

The Babalaje Agbe in the local government area, Chief Joseph Oyekola, said the farmers in the area were disturbed by the development, adding, “This has been our experience in the community in the past eight years.”

Oyekola, who doubles as the Secretary of the Idera Agbe Famers Association in the council, said, “We don’t know what to do again, because if we take any step of revenge, it may lead to bloodshed. We want the government to help us by taking necessary steps because those who are supposed to rise against the incursion by the herdsmen are not proactive.

“We recall that some herdsmen once cut off the hand of one of our workers on the farm. They destroyed our farm produce; another farmer was injured in the head, among other cases. Two minors were once raped.”

One of the victims, Usman Daudu, whose farm was vandalised allegedly by the herders, stated that 20 hectares of his maize, yam and tomatoes plantations was destroyed by cattle.

Daudu, who claimed to have sustained a head injury from the attack by the herders, said, “They have not stopped the invasion of our farmlands. We pleaded with them several times but they didn’t yield. They are Bororo. These people are different from the Fulani herders, who have been with us from time immemorial. We are used to those ones and we don’t have any issue with them.”

Another victim, Dominic Gbegbi, said he was dealt machete blows while trying to pursue the herders, who invaded his farmland.

The Onikoyi of Ikoyi-Ile, Oba Abdul-Yekeen Oladipupo, said his efforts at brokering peace between the farmers and the herders in the area had proved abortive.

He stated, “We have tried to resolve the crisis on several occasions, because it is difficult to separate the farmers and herders; we have been living together for a while. My efforts were not successful. We need government’s intervention in the matter.