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From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
It was a mournful scene on Tuesday as scores of women from Ugwuleshi autonomous community in Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State picketed the palace of their traditional ruler, Igwe Godwin Nwobi, wailing and protesting against what they described as the unbearable destruction, violence and hunger inflicted on them by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
With green leaves in hand and placards bearing distress messages, the women lamented how herders had overrun their farmlands, raped and killed villagers, leaving them with nothing but trauma and starvation.
They also demanded justice and protection, especially the release of their detained community leaders, the president-general, Aaron Chidi, and the chief security officer, Kingsley Ilo, who were arrested by the police for the death of a herder near the community’s boundary with Ebonyi and Abia states.
The attack, the women said, was one too many. Their livelihoods have been shattered. The women’s spokesman, Felicia Okompi, said that their farmlands have been destroyed by the herders.
She said: “We are dying of hunger. Cattle herders have pursued us from our farm settlements where we planted rice, cocoyam, and cassava, to our homes.
“They destroyed our farms in the name of grazing; now our people are hungry. We rely on our farm produce to train our children in school. We are not civil servants. That is why we are pleading with you to come to our aid.”
According to Okompi, large tracts of rice, cassava and yam farms have been eaten up by cows.
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In a particular incident, a woman, Ngozika Okolie, and her daughter, Ukamaka, were brutally attacked with machetes as they tried to stop herders from grazing on their cassava farm. She narrated how the attacking herder had targeted Okolie’s daughter’s head with a cutlass but she quickly blocked the weapon with her hand, leaving her arm almost severed.
Okolie, along with another victim, Victor Okafor, showed their wounds of deep machete cuts that bore testimony to their ordeal. Okafor recalled how he narrowly escaped death with a gash on his forehead and a severed finger.
Okompi recounted more horrors. “Onyeka Chukwu and Chidozie Friday were murdered in their farms in 2023 and their bodies severed and bagged,” she said.
The community’s traditional ruler, Igwe Nwobi, shared in the anguish of his people, saying the attacks have left him torn between staying to defend his people and fleeing for his life.
He said: “There was a time I tried to leave this community but how can you leave your father’s house and run away? We keep begging them and calling on those who can talk to them to make these people leave our community.
“Even recently, they cut somebody’s hand and we keep telling them to please leave. Our business is farming. We have no other business. We don’t know what to do. We are at a crossroads.”
The monarch, who appeared visibly distraught, said the arrest of two community members, Chidi and Ilo, has deepened the community’s pain.
“We know nothing about the killing. Yet our people are being detained,” he said, adding that Ugwuleshi has been under siege from herders since 2016.
He painted a picture of daily fear: “How can you stay in your house and you are afraid? You are afraid of even walking on the road. You leave your house in the morning and are not sure whether you will return alive.
“It is very bad. It is causing so much trouble for our people. They have nothing to eat. They go to the market and won’t sell or buy anything. They cannot work in their farms because of fear of attack.”
In response to the turmoil, the chairman of Awgu Local Government Area, Uche Okolo, assured residents that his administration was doing its best to restore peace and security.
His his media aide, Tochukwu Chukwu, said: “Aside from the various peace meetings that have been held, the hospital bills of all those attacked recently were fully paid.”
He urged residents to remain law-abiding while the authorities work to uncover the truth behind the alleged killing of the herder.
When contacted, the police public relations officer in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, said that he was not aware of the development.
For many in Ugwuleshi, peace remains a distant dream as their farmlands have become killing fields and their homes a fortress of fear. Until decisive action is taken, their cries for help may continue to echo unstopped.
