Agatu massacre: How they killed my son and brother &#8211; Victim&#8217;s mother

– The victim said the crisis between indigenes and the herdsmen started long ago

– She said her son, a medical doctor and her brother were killed during the crisis

– The minister of agriculture and rural development, Audu Ogbeh, a native of Idoma said they would not tolerate anybody who attempts to displace them from their communities

A herdsman escorting his cattle with AK47 riffle

A woman has narrated how her her son, a medical doctor was killed in a crisis that engulfed the Agatu community, in Benue state.

Kasuwa Gabriel, who spoke at the Agatu town hall meeting in Abuja said the invasion by the herdsmen starting in 2013.

On Saturday, March 5, some Fulani herdsmen invaded Agatu local government, an Idoma community in the North central state in Nigeria – Benure state.

The Fulani’s were reported to be bent on taking over the Agatu area. They were said to have indicated that the grass in the Agatu is good for their grazing animals.

She said that on a particular day, she was out farming on one of her family lands when some herdsmen invaded and pursued her and other women out of the farmland.

“I and the other women, we went back to tell our husbands that the Fulani people pursued us from the land,” Gabriel said.

She said: “My husband said why will that happen since we have never had problem with them, why are they wasting our crops?”

Gabriel said the herdsmen, however, succeeded in overpowering the natives of the community, pursing them out of their homes.

She said the herdsmen also succeeded in killing her son who she managed to train as a medical doctor in a Nigerian university.

“My own brother who was living with me was also killed,” she continued, speaking in Idoma dialect.

Gabriel also said that she had no family members or relations and that the dress she was wearing at the meeting was given to her at an internally displaced camp in Otukpo, an area in Benue state.

Two other men from the troubled Agatu who spoke at the meeting said they were living of relief by good Samaritans in Otukpo.

Also speaking, the chairman of Agatu network forum in Abuja, Chris Eneche said it was important government take adequate responsibility of those affected by the crisis in the area.

Eneche said compensation should be paid to immediate families, there should be on the spot rehabilitation of schools, roads and various facilities destroyed by the herdsmen.

He also recommended immediate relocation of the herdsmen from the affected communities, permanent military posts and rehabilitation of major roads for easy access by military personnel and relief material donated to those directly affected by the crisis.

“The relief materials are coming, no doubt but you know what we call the Nigeria factor, the relief materials never get to these people who are displaced and need this items,” Eneche said.

Also, the founder of Brekete family, a radio show in Abuja, Ahmed Isa sympathizing with Idoma people said it is difficult to understand why it took the Nigerian government a long time to act on the crisis in Agatu.

Isa, speaking in Pidgin English said: “The thing wey dey happen for Agatu suppose chuck us for liver; I just dey wonder why it took the government so long to act on this.”

He further encouraged a fund raising dinner for those affected and currently displaced by the massacre in Agatu community.

Adding that the accounts of the funds raised should be managed by those directly affected while the indigenes of Agatu and Idoma people as a while would be involved in supervising the use of the funds.

But an indigene of Idoma, Enyanatu Ifenne said the crisis in the area must be handled immediately devoid of all political undertone.

Ifenne said: “The crisis in Agatu is not a tribal war, it is not a religious war but a structural problem.”

She said the structure of the Nigerian government system must redressed to meet the immediate needs of the people.

She said it is disheartening that when issues arise at the grassroots level it has to take the effort of the state government or even the federal government to address such issues like the crisis in Agatu.

However, making an appearance, the minister of agriculture and rural development, Audu Ogbeh, who is also a native of Idoma said the efforts are being made to ensure that the crisis is suppressed.

“I have told the president, we will move the cows to their states of origin, we have to grow the paddocks and move them,” Ogbeh said.

The minister said he would meet with the inspector general of police, Solomon Arase, the minister of internal affairs, Abdulrahman Dambazau to ensure that measures are taken to prevent further attacks from the herdsmen.

Ogbeh said: “Nobody is going to drive Idoma people out of Idoma land; we are hardworking, committed and hospitable people but nobody will drive us out of our land.”

Meanwhile, the Nigerian senate has said that Boko Haram members are behind the March 5 killings in Agatu and not Fulani herdsmen.

The senate in a resolution said the Boko Haram terrorists who parade themselves as herdsmen in these communities must be wiped out. communities

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Agatu massacre: How they killed my son and brother – Victim’s mother