Soldier, 24 Others Killed In Taraba Farmers-Herders Crisis

A military officer has been ambushed and killed along with 24 other residents of Ussa and Takum local government areas of Taraba State.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer in Taraba State, Abdullahi Usman, the 24 persons were either of Kuteb or Fulani extractions.

“The military officer who was from the checkpoint coming back to 93 Battalion Barrack was ambushed and killed, though nothing was taken from him, his motorcycle and luckily he has no rifle on him.

“He was killed by unknown persons and an investigation has been launched to unravel those behind the killing. Statistically, 20 Kuteb indigenes were killed while three Fulani herdsmen also paid the supreme price as a result of the crisis,” the PPRO stated.

He added that the major problem halting the return of peace in the area was the claim by the Fulani herdsmen that their cattle were held hostage by the Kuteb farmers and the denial from the other parties, who could not access their farms for the fear of the unknown.

“The problem we are now facing is that the Fulani are claiming that their cattle are rustled and are held hostage within the Kuteb farmers’ areas while the Kutebs fear going to the farm for fear of attack from the Fulani herdsmen.

“The Commissioner of Police has called on the leader of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association in Ussa and the claimants to discuss, agree and go to where they alleged that their cattle are held hostage for fact-finding as well as the release of same for peace to reign,” the Police spokesman added.

President of the Kuteb Yatgso Association of Nigeria, an umbrella body of the Kuteb-speaking people, Emmanuel Ukwen, said as the leader of his people, he has not seen the state government either visit his people or sympathise with them or provide the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps with relief materials, a situation the state government denied saying it provided the shelter they are staying as well as relief materials in quantum.