April 14, 2016
• By daniel
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association
of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Taraba State has said no fewer than 50 of its members
have been killed in the current crisis between herdsmen and Ndoro people in
Gashaka Local Government Area of the State.
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association
of Nigeria (MACBAN) in Taraba State has said no fewer than 50 of its members
have been killed in the current crisis between herdsmen and Ndoro people in
Gashaka Local Government Area of the State.
The Chairman of MACBAN
in the state, Alhaji Sahabi Mahmud, made the assertion at a press conference in
Jalingo, Wednesday, in reaction to the claim by the Taraba State Police Command
that Fulani herdsmen attacked people of Dori and Maisuma villages.
According to Alh.
Mahmud, the situation was rather a misunderstanding between resident herdsmen
and farming communities, which arose following the discovery in a bush of a
decomposing body of a lady, suspected to be Ndoro.
He said the Ndoro
people blamed the herdsmen for the woman’s death and in retaliation, killed
over 50 of them.
“As if it was
pre-planned, the villagers suddenly resorted to attacking our members, killing
about 50 of them while many are still missing and over 3000 cattle were either
killed or taken away”, the Chairman said
He stated that after
being fully briefed by his branch chairmen in Gashaka, Bali and Kurmi local
government areas, he immediately informed the state commissioner of police,
Shaba Alkali, and other security agents in the state and called on them to
intervene.
Mr. Mahmud, however,
expressed regrets that rather than handle the matter as a misunderstanding
between the two groups, Mr. Alkali took sides by persecuting the herdsmen,
including the arrest of one Ardo Ayuba, who he noted was not even a resident of
the affected area.
It would be recalled
that the police commissioner issued a press release on Tuesday in which he
alleged that a group of people numbering about 20, suspected to be Fulani
herdsmen, attacked Dori and Maisuma villages on April 10, 2016 and killed 1
person
While condemning the
action of the state police command for “branding his members as the culprits”,
the Meyetti Allah chairman called on the State Governor, Darius Ishaku to
immediately convene a roundtable of all stakeholders for a genuine dialogue
with a view to amicably resolving the dispute.
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