Tension as Fulani herdsmen kill 2 in Delta

THERE was apprehension , weekend, at Ohoro community in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta state following the killing of two villagers by suspected Fulani herdsmen. The circumstances of the killing were still hazy, but angry villagers mobilized , during the week,  and laid siege to the East –West Road and surrounding bushes   in search of the cattle rearers.
Their protest,  disrupted traffic for several hours and left many travelers stranded on the busy highway, while two caterpillars belonging to Setraco, the construction firm handling the dualization of the East-West Road were set ablaze, while soldiers and police officers were deployed to maintain law and order.
For some time now,  there had been skirmishes between Fulani herdsmen and some communities in the state over the destruction of their farm crops.
The governor of the state, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, early, this week, warned cattle rearers  to stop damaging farm crops, saying the government would not condone such action anymore.
A source said the anger of the villagers against the cattle rearers was fueled by cold-blooded murder of the two youths, whose remains were laid at the community’s junction.
Recently, a Fulani herdsman attempted to rape a woman in her farm in Patani local government area. The woman’s son, who was working in another part of the farm,  heard his mother’s cry, rushed to the scene  and dealt machete cuts on the supposed rapist.
Days later, Fulani herdsmen gathered  and  killed an undergraduate in one of the communities.
It took the intervention of the chair of Patani  local government , Dr. Chris Ekiyor, who invited security agents before the matter was quelled.
Joint Task Force commander in the area, Lt Col Attahiru Rasheed told Vanguard the latest crisis was between the villagers and Fulani herdsmen, saying soldiers and police had brought the situation under control.