>
Suspected Fulani herdsmen on Friday attacked a retired school principal, Ojedokun Ogunmodede, in Igangan town, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The reason Ogunmodede was attacked was unknown but sources close to the victim said there was no confrontation between the former principal and the herdsmen who inflicted machete injuries on him and almost chopped off his two hands.
The Secretary of Ibarapa Farmers Union, Mr Taiwo Adeagbo, popularly known as Akowe Agbe, told The Punch in a telephone interview that the retired principal is his relative.
Adeagbo, who is fighting for the rights of farmers in Ibarapa, said herdsmen had not stopped destroying farms and attacking farmers in the area despite public outcry against their criminal activities.
He said: “The victim is my relative. He is a retired principal and he should be around 62 years old. I was called to see what happened to him. I immediately called the Commissioner of Police (Ngozi Onadeko). She said I should report to the police officially and I called the DPO in Ayete. He came with two officers and two vans loaded with armed policemen.
“The DPO could not look at the pictures of the victim. They were gory. Strands of flesh are preventing the two hands from falling off after the attack. The two hands are almost off. They have ruined his life.”
The Oyo State Police Command spokesperson, CSP Olugbenga Fadeyi, said the attack was a reprisal by a herder to an earlier attack against three Fulani herdsmen by some youths in Igangan.
“Information from DPO Ayete revealed that a Fulani herdsman attacked and macheted a man in his farm by causing injury to his hands.
“The attack was a reprisal by some youths in Igangan, three Fulani herdsmen were attacked and they sustained injuries.They were rushed to a hospital in Igboora for treatment.
“The DPO Ayete and his police personnel were drafted to the scene to prevent further attack. The aggrieved youths were dispersed and normalcy restored.”