BY TIMOTHY AGBOR
Defenceless residents of Agu-Amede community in Eha-Amufu, Isi-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State have fled their homeland as no fewer than 10 of their kinsmen were reportedly killed by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
It was gathered that the armed herders had invaded the agrarian community on Monday, sacked villages, wounded many, and also set houses ablaze.
It had been reported that armed Fulani herdsmen sacked over 14 local villages in Agu-Amede and Mgbuji communities since the second quarter of 2021.
It was also reported that so many people had been killed with properties worth millions of naira destroyed.
Also, many people including children had been kidnapped by the same armed herdsmen who reportedly use Benue State as a launching base.
The latest attack, The Point gathered started last weekend when the armed Fulani herdsmen invaded Agu-Amede community and killed two persons and returned on Monday and killed another eight people who were returning from their farms, and in their houses.
In videos of the attack seen by The Point, many of the deceased had their throats slit with multiple machete cuts in their heads.
Women were not left out in the vicious onslaught, as two daughters of a church cleric in the community were killed.
A community leader, Augustine Odoh, who spoke to journalists confirmed the attack, adding that it happened on Monday around 1pm.
Odo said that all the members of their community living outside the community had been summoned home, adding that by Tuesday, the community would convey the corpses of the deceased to the Enugu State Government House to meet Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, since his government had practically abandoned them.
According to Odo, “Fulani militias invaded first on Saturday, killed two people. On Monday, they invaded the community again and killed eight people including our women and children. So many other people about, 25 of them were equally wounded. They’re in the hospital; we don’t know how many people are going to survive.”
Odo stated that residents were now deserting their houses over the renewed attacks.
Lamenting the incessant attack by Fulani herdsmen, Odo claimed that in all the attacks, no government security came to their aid.
“Our people cannot confront them with bare hands. They come in their numbers with AK-47 rifles and other dangerous weapons, shooting and destroying houses for hours unchallenged.
“The government will only deploy soldiers in communities in other South-East States to hound and kill members of pro-Biafra groups especially the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) but same soldiers cannot be deployed to our communities to stop herdsmen and Islamic terrorists’ attacks.
“That is the hypocrisy in this government. In my community now people see soldiers and other security agents as sympathisers and collaborators of the Islamic terrorists masquerading as herdsmen who are trying to conquer our lands.”
On Tuesday, information filtered to the community that the arms attackers were approaching, thus, residents hurriedly took to their heels and ran out of the community.
They trekked long distance to neighbouring communities for safety.
Efforts to get reaction of the Enugu State Police Command were not successful as the spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, did not take his calls.
