Two residents of Okpekpe community in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, Batemue Philip Ebo and Christopher Bello, were on Monday killed by suspected herdsmen in their farms.
The death of the two farmers were confirmed by both the community’s traditional ruler, Onwuweko of Okpekpe, Peter Osigbemeh and the chairman of the local government council, Benedicta Attoh.
The Okpekpe killings came on the heels of a deadly clash in Ovia South-West local government areas of the state between cocoa farmers and alleged produce thieves said to be Izon boys in which about 22 lives were lost.
The state governor, Monday Okebholo, in a statement on Tuesday, condemned both incidents warning that the state government would not tolerate any form of violence in any part of the state. He also commiserated with the families of those killed.’
Confirming the killing of the two farmers in Okpekpe, the royal father said policemen were already on the ground in the town to maintain peace. He described the situation as bad, urging his people to remain calm as the police would fish the killers of the duo.
He said, “It is true that herders killed two of our kinsmen when they went to their farms. The police are in the community to find out what happened and fish out the killers. I will urge our people to remain calm as the police are set to unravel the matter.”
Attoh, on her part, appealed to the state government to take immediate action to stop the killing as the entire community might be wiped out.
\ In a statement by her Chief Press Secretary, Benjamin Atu, she condemned the killings. She frowned at the Federal Government’s perceived ambivalence amid the herdsmen’s attacks which she said were leading to loss of lives.
Attoh said, “It is time to tackle this high-level insecurity by deploying military in parts of the bush and farm areas to give the farmers an immediate sense of safety in their farmlands. “This is a Black Monday in the Okpekpe community over the killing of the two farmers. The government should act now.
“We urge the governor of the state to deploy security across the community and activate local vigilante, who had been consistently used to secure the council area.” In his reaction, Governor Okpebholo, frowned at the recent attacks on seven farming communities in Ovia-South-West Local Government Area, which resulted in the loss of 22 lives and widespread destruction of property.
The Governor has also denounced the killing of two farmers, Batemue Philip Ebo and Christopher Bello, in Okpekpe community by suspected herdsmen.’
Okpebholo said “We will not tolerate any form of violence or lawlessness in Edo State. “We will work tirelessly to ensure that those responsible for these heinous acts are brought to justice, and we will do everything in our power to prevent such incidents from happening again in the future.” While ordering the deployment of additional security personnel to the affected areas and the provision of support to the affected communities, the governor said, “We are committed to ensuring the safety and security of all Edo State residents.
“We will work closely with the security agencies, traditional leaders, and community members to achieve this goal.”
He appealed to Edo residents to remain calm and go about their normal business as “We are doing everything possible to ensure that the situation is brought under control.”
WhatsApp us
Comments