Family begs Sanwo-Olu for rescue as herdsmen invades Epe farms, chase away farmers

Heavily armed Fulani herdsmen chased away some local farmers in Iganke Farmland, Odo-Egiri, Epe, Lagos State after destroying their farmlands.

Ali Moibi-Balogun family said the herdsmen raided the farmland, shooting sporadically, forcing the staff working in the farms to flee.

The family added that the whereabouts of a pregnant woman was unknown.

The family, who petitioned the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and the Inspector General of Police, appealing for their intervention to reclaim their land from some herdsmen.

The letter petition titled, ‘Invasion: Iganke Farmland, Odo-Egiri, Epe, Lagos,’ was dated May 10, 2021 and signed by the family lawyer,  Adeyemi Adegbite.

The family said they petitioned the governor after the police in Noforija, Epe, allegedly branded them as suspects after they complained that their farmland had been invaded by the herdsmen who also threatened to wreck more havoc on the community.

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The petition reads partly, “We hereby most humbly urge your Excellency to deploy your very good offices to intervene in this matter, cause a discreet investigation is to be conducted, and ensure that our society is not turned into a lawless one where might is right and where power can be hijacked by a few powerful and privileged individual or group of individuals to the detriment of the common and law-abiding citizens.”

Ali Moibi-Balogun family added that they were the owners of a large expanse of land housing Iganke farmland, “by virtue of inheritance from their forbearers since time immemorial according to the Yoruba custom and tradition.”

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The family explained that the herdsmen’s incursion on the land was first noticed on the 4th March 2021.

The family noted that the herdsmen raided the farmland, shooting sporadically, forcing the staff working there to flee. They added that the whereabouts of a pregnant woman was unknown.

The petition added, “On April 22, 2021, another attack was carried out on our client, this time on their (our client’s) residence. As we speak, the herdsmen are fully settled and are chasing everyone away, threatening our client’s lives and the police at Noforija have lost hope of combating this menace.”

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