The Commander, Operation Safe Haven, the Special Military Task Force set up to restore law and order in Plateau State and parts of Bauchi and Southern Kaduna, Major General Augustine Agundu has commenced an intensive tour/visit to crisis prone areas to caution farmers and herders from clashing during the farming season.
During the visits, Major General Agundu accused the youths of the various tribes under the STF Area of Responsibility of concealing weapons.
He however warned that the earlier they submit the arms and ammunition to the police the better for them, stressing that community leaders must be mindful of the fact that the youths may someday turn against them and use the weapons against them.
In one of the peace parley with Berom youths and Fulani stakeholders in Riyom LGA, Major General Agundu declared that no farmer should be afraid to go to the farm during the season warning that anyone who stands as an obstacle to the farming season will be hunted down.
Similarly, Agundu warned that nobody should restrict herders from passing through places that are not farmlands in order to feed their cattle stressing that the animals have a right to eat.
He said it is unfortunate that political and community leaders in Plateau State have sowed seeds of discord in the minds of the youths from various tribes as enemies.
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“One peculiar issue on the Plateau is that we hold unto ethnicity as if one particular person is more superior than the other”, he said.
“People have a right to their culture and their identity but when you say because of that culture, you are superior to another tribe then you are looking for trouble,” he added.
The STF Commander also admonished Fulani herders in Maraban Dare and Dutse Kura in Bassa local government area to avoid farmlands during grazing.
It would be recalled that most clashes between predominantly Berom farmers and Fulani herders occur during the farming season when farmers accuse herders of veering their cows to feed
In separate responses, the Dagwom Rwei of Riyom, Samuel Mwadkwan Jok advised Fulani herders to accompany minors who may be unable to control the herds of cows and cautioned the Berom against attacking the herders when their farm lands have been destroyed but to follow the appropriate channel to report the incident.
The Ardo of Riyom who was represented by Bello Adamu disclosed that Fulani herders in the area no longer use unsupervised young boys to herd cattle so as to avoid farmland destructions.
Adamu said what was happening is that herders were facing problems from tin miners who chase away herders leaving the cows to veer into farmlands.
The OPSH commander was accompanied on the tour by representatives of National Orientation Agency and the Plateau Peace Building Agency .
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