The Ondo State Security outfit, codenamed Amotekun, announced Wednesday that it had decreased farmer-herder confrontations by 95% in the last two years across the state.
Addressing journalists at an interactive session hosted by the state Correspondent Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, titled ‘The Platform,’ in Akure, Amotekun Commander, Chief Adetunji Adeleye, stated that the formation of the outfit had reduced criminal activities throughout the state.
Adeleye said: “By the time we took off, within two weeks, we received over 5,000 petitions of herders/farmers clashes. It was becoming impossible for farmers to go to their farms completely, for fear of herders molesting, kidnapping, maiming or killing them.
“It was becoming very difficult for civil servants to board a taxi across the town without being kidnapped, molested or robbed in daylight. The worse was climbing on Okada.
“The first area of attack by Amotekun was the herders/farmers clashes.
“We started by mass public enlightenment that farmers have the right to plant and herders the right to rear their cows but they don’t have the right to infringe on the business of the other one and after this, we called the meeting of the Miyetti Allah group in the state and South West and we explained the position of the corps, giving a deadline after which we announced that we will commence enforcement.
“To the glory of God, in our first operation, we found out that even within the Alagbaka GRA where the Government House and office are located, over 500 cows that were forcefully taken over from a widow, were kept there. All efforts in the last five years, by the widow to recover them were met with stiff opposition from the herdsmen.”
“We had taken quite several erring herders to court. We’ve equally taken farmers who took laws into their hands and seized Fulani cows to court for stealing.”