Suspected Fulani herdsmen, numbering at least nine, have attacked the palace of Onigedegede of Gedegede in Akoko North-West Local Government Area of Ondo State, threatening to kill the monarch, Oba Walidu Sanni, The Independent reports.
The monarch said the suspected herdsmen stormed his palace, harassed and threatened him because he had reported the continued destruction of his subjects’ farm produce and farmlands to the police.
Consequently, Oba Sanni raised the alarm over the threat posed by the Fulani herdsmen to his life, his immediate family members and people of Gedegede Town.
The monarch said he reported the case to the police after he seized a gun and a cutlass which he deposited to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Okeagbe Police Station, Mr Johnson Akintola.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ parley initiated by the state government in order to douse the tension and apprehension in the council area, the monarch said the government’s timely intervention saved the situation from becoming bloody.
According to him, his subjects were spoiling for a showdown following the herdsmen’s invasion of the palace and subsequent harassment.
The traditional ruler noted that the incident was reported to the Chairman Akoko NorthWest Local Government Area, Samson Akande as well as fellow traditional rulers in the area.
According to him, the timely intervention of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu who deployed his Special Assistant on Security Matters, Alhaji Jimoh Dojumo, to douse the tension saved the tensed situation.
Dojumo at the meeting said carrying of arms and ammunition are prohibited while grazing in any part of the state.
Also, he said grazing between 6 am and 6 pm in the state is prohibited while no under-aged children should graze in the state.
Dojumo urged herdsmen to live with their host communities peacefully, assuring them that the governor would soon invite all the stakeholders for talks in a bid to find lasting solutions to the incessant clashes.
