Rivers women protest against destruction of farmlands by suspected herders

Women from Eveku community in Emohua Local Council of Rivers State, yesterday, staged a protest at Rumuji Police Division to demand urgent intervention in the activities of herdsmen in their farmland.

The placard-wielding women marched to the police station before going to the palace of the paramount ruler to lay their complaints about how cattle destroyed their crops, leaving their families with hunger.

In company of the community woman leader, Joy Obisike, the protesters called on the local council chairman, Governor Nyesom Wike and President Muhammadu Buhari, as well as security agencies, to prevail on the herders to stay away from their farmlands.

The visibly aggrieved women threatened to deploy any means to ensure their safety and that of their crops. Obisike said: “I led this protest to the police station this morning to inform them that herdsmen have been coming to our farmland to destroy our crops.

“For now, there is no means to feed because we completely rely on our farm produce. So, we want them (police) to tell the herdsmen not to enter our farmlands again.”

A former community woman leader, Salome Amakanwa, while accusing the herders of threatening them with guns and dangerous weapons, alleged that their women were also being raped at gunpoint.

“Now, we are saying our problem because cows have eaten all the crops we planted. The solution now is to tell them to stop coming into our community.

“Even, sometimes we go to the farm and the next thing we see are herdsmen. They have raped some of our women. They threaten to shoot or dagger us, if we talk,” she said.

However, a police officer at Rumuji division, who addressed the protesters, advised them to carry their complaints to the local council for urgent intervention.