Sarkin Hausawa pooh-poohs video, says herdsmen were not killed in Benin

The Sarkin Hausawa of Edo, Alhaji Adamu Isa, on Thursday, in Benin, debunked the alleged killings of some herdsmen in Benin.

A video has been doing the round on the social media with some verbal claims that it was the killing of herdsmen in Benin in whose possession some guns were found.

Isa made the disclosure shortly after a closed-door meeting with Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo at the Government House, Benin.

“We discussed the issue of banditry, herders and farmers’ crisis and other security challenges and lies being posted on the social media that some Arewa members were being killed in Edo.

“So, as far as I am concerned, as the Sarkin Hausa of Benin, who is the head of all the Arewa communities in Edo, I have not got facts about this story being spread on social media.  As far as we are concerned in Edo, Edo is a peace loving place,” he said.

He said that herders and farmers’ clashes were an old issue in the state, and he promised to cooperate with the present administration to make sure it was brought down to the barest minimum.

Isa assured the governor that he would do everything, within his power, to assist the government in reducing the current security challenges facing the state.

In his remarks, Gov. Obaseki, said that from all the facts he had gathered, all he was seeing was just a deliberate attempt by misguided people, who were willing to play politics with security in Nigeria.

“From what I have seen, from what I have heard, I had gone round communities, what I could see is just a deliberate attempt by some misguided people to play politics with security in Nigeria.

“This is really unfortunate, I went round some communities a few days ago, yes, there have been some unfortunate incidents and it’s not unusual at this time of the year, the dry season.

“A lot of herdsmen are looking for greener pasture and then stray into other people’s properties and farm land, we have in Edo State set up systems to check this, we are just going to reactivate those systems.

“Every local government must have a committee to deal with herders and farmers crisis, this committee must have a minimum of three representatives from Arewa community, Fulani and other dominant community in the local government.

“On the other side, you will have the representative of traditional institutions and the security agencies, who are supposed to intervene whenever there is a crisis in those areas,” he said.

The governor assured that a command and control center had been created to allow members of the Arewa community, with useful information to volunteer such anonymously.