AFAN Laments Crops Destruction In Kwara

Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Kwara State chapter, Mr Daniel Ajiboye,  has called on the state government to address the problem of incessant destruction of farmlands by herdsmen.

Ajiboye made the call recently in an interview with newsmen in Omu-Aran.

He said the menace, if left unchecked, could affect the realisation of the objectives of government’s agriculture transformation initiatives, especially at the grassroots.

“The menace of herdsmen and their animals is becoming worrisome as it is now a recurring decimal every season. This has resulted in poor harvest.

“Farmlands in communities are being frequently invaded by the herdsmen who destroy our crops and threaten our lives.

“The menace has now assumed a dangerous dimension as it has become difficult for any affected farmer to challenge them because they are often armed with guns and cutlasses,” Ajiboye said.

He called for regulation of the activities of the herdsmen by government, to save the lives of farmers and their produce.

The chairman said that the herdsmen need to be properly informed and educated on the implication of releasing their animals to graze indiscriminately on farmlands.

He said AFAN had written series of letters to the law enforcement agencies, notifying them about the problem.

In his reaction, Chairman of Cattle Breeders Association in Kwara, Malam Usman Adamu, told newsmen that the association had embarked on sensitisation exercise on the need for herdsmen to live in peace with farmers.

He assured farmers in the state that drastic measures would be taken to address the problem.