Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo state and other ruling elite in the state have been advised to take a decisive action against the incursion of the killer Fulani ‘herdsmen’ to avoid a repeat of what happened in 1848.
In an open letter to Obaseki, Sylvester Akhaine, an Associate Professor and acting head, Department of Political Science, Lagos State University, said while other states have openly rejected cattle colonies and promulgated Anti-open grazing laws, the governing elite in Edo state has maintained felonious silence on the matter.
According to him, history is a resource central to the survival of peoples and organisations.
“The same alien forces that are ravaging all parts of the country in murderous adventures today invaded Hausaland in 1804 and seized the political superstructure of the Hausa who today are subsumed under their domination. They indeed invaded Edoland from the north of our space known today as Kukuruku areas, a name engendered by the heroic resistance to the invaders known to oral tradition as Azanamas.
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Prof. Akhaine explained that during the reign of Oba Adolo (1848-1888), the Edo people fought wars with the Nupes who formed the bulk of the invaders under the superintendence of the Fulanis.
“The Nupes who launched out on two fronts, westwards against the Yorubas and southwards against the Edos in their crusade against the peoples of the forest region met with resistance. The Yorubas inflicted a crushing defeat on them at the famous battles of Osogbo spearheaded by the Ibadan forces in 1840 and later the British at Erinmope in the late 19th century.
“They had a field-day in the Kukuruku country which they raided for slaves and altered the socio-political institutions of that part of Edoland a great deal. In the records of the British, the Kukuruku division was formed with headquarters in Fugar in 1919.
“Until this period much of Edo North, including Ososo, Okpella, Uzairue North and North Ibie were administered as part of Northern Nigeria under the British from Lokoja. Indeed, without the overwhelming resistance from our forebears, we would have been living in a world of aliens.
“The partisan nature of the military in the genocidal war against peace-loving peoples of this country is legendary. For example, when the people of Ukpabi Nimbo in Enugu in the South-East converged to discuss their fate in the hands of the Fulani terrorists, security forces were deployed to halt the gathering while arrests were made.
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“Bosso Community in Niger state were attacked by the ‘herdsmen’, and therefore primed themselves for self-defence. For that reason, men of the 31st Artillery Brigade invaded the community in a dawn raid. Nearer home, after the killings in Ewu, Edo State, the innocent protesters were shot at by the military from a unit in Auchi.
He said there is more evidence across the country which lent credence to the accusation of complicity of the military/security forces by the former army chief, General T. Y Danjuma.
Prof. Akhaine revealed that one of the methods adopted by the invaders in recent times is called swamping. “They evacuate their people at night into neighbourhoods and then form innocuous retail posts over which they make inroads into occupied communities. It is an old stratagem they employed in Hausaland before take-over in the 19th century.
“My fear is the influx of the ‘herders’ into all parts of Edoland: from Ovia North East, Orhionmwon, Ikopa-Okha, Ibillo, Igarra, Ekpoma, Irrua, Ugbegun, Igueben Agenegbode. Most alarming is the large concentration of the ‘herders’ in a large swath of land lying between Ewohimi and Uromi in Edo central (Esanland). The ‘herders’ script in Nigeria is land grab and control of the locals.
He said the continuous influx of the terrorist herders into Edoland indicates that the State government under the leadership of Governor Obaseki may have ceded the land to them for occupation, thereby fostering an existential crisis for Edo people.
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“The reality on the ground belies your government’s position. It is that a large chunk of Edoland is being occupied by ‘herdsmen’ steadily and illegally. The lie of things in relation to the subject demands more than statements. It requires practical action.
“Let me warn that if proactive steps are not taken now, we might soon find ourselves in ‘dishonourable graves’. It requires practical action and the time to act is now.