Makinde visits warring Fulani, Yoruba communities, urges parties to eschew violence

JOSEPH OKWUOFU, Ibadan

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has appealed to warring Fulani and Yoruba communities in Iganna, Oke-Ogun axis of the state to eschew violence, urging them to learn to coexist peacefully.

Many residents of the area were reportedly injured in a bloody clash between the host Yoruba and Fulani communities in a dispute between two parties over destruction of farmland in the community.
The governor, however, warned that his administration would not allow anyone in the state to take laws into his hands .

Also, in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, the governor was quoted as telling the people to avoid reprisal attacks, adding that the law will take its cause.
Speaking during an on-the-spot assessment of a Fulani settlement in Iganna, in Iwajowa Local Government, Makinde said that his administration will provide amenities and ensure more government presence in the area.

Makinde equally commended the swift response of the security agencies in the state, adding that the situation would have gone out of control if they had not come out to frontally intervene.
Gove Makinde appealed to residents of Iganna to embrace peace and stop the circle of violence.

He said: “Whether the people here in Iganna are Fulani or Yoruba, what has happened here is a needless waste of lives and property. No explanation can justify what has happened. What I am saying in essence is that the cycle must stop, and we must not, from this, go on reprisal and all of that. No.

“I can assure you that we will get to the bottom of this as justice will be done. We will also bring palliatives because coming all the way to this place has shown me that there must be more government presence in neighbourhoods like this. We will ensure that a few amenities from the government are brought into this neighbourhood so that they can be properly integrated into the Iganna community.

“It could have been more than this if the security agencies did not step in almost immediately.
So, I am glad that Operation Burst, the Nigerian Police, Civil Defence, and Amotekun all rallied round and that is why we have the peace we are seeing at this point in time otherwise, clashes would still have been going on.

We have to keep giving enlightenment to our people because the constitution of this country guarantees freedom of movement. As long as you obey the local laws, you can stay anywhere you like in this country. So, we have to learn to live with and tolerate ourselves and be law-abiding. You cannot take the law into your own hands.

“If something has happened, report it to the police and let the authorities do their work. That is the crux of all of the problems we can see here. Somebody was attacked, but before reporting formally to the authority, you decided to have a reprisal attack. No, this must stop, as it has no place in Oyo State.”

In his response, the Sabigana of Iganan, Oba Azeez Oyemonla Soliu, commended Governor Makinde and security agencies for their quick response, saying that the incident was unfortunate.

He therefore called on the residents of Iganna to make room for a harmonious relationship with foreigners in the town.

A spokesman for the Fulani community, Seriki Mahmud Yusuf, who is the leader of the Seriki Fulani Youths in Oyo State, said that the community was peace-loving and law-abiding, adding that the crisis was needless.

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