The killings in troubled local government areas of Plateau State have taken another dimension as no fewer than 300 hectares of farmland have been destroyed by the rampaging terrorists
According to the National President of Berom Youth Moulders (BYM), Barrister Solomon Dalyop Nwatiri, who spoke with Tribune Online, the bandits now deploy drones for surveillance before attacks.
Recall that Mangu, Barakin-Ladi, and Riyom local government areas of Plateau State have been under the siege of terrorists in the past two months, leading to deaths of many people, mostly women and children.
Speaking with our correspondent, Nwatiri disclosed that quite a number of farms, precisely in Barakin-Ladi and Riyom, had been destroyed, basically to weaken the economic base of the people being predominantly farmers.
“From two weeks to date, no fewer than 800 farms covering about 300 hectares of land have been destroyed, particularly in these two local government areas. Virtually all the farmland has been raised down; only a few are standing.
“These destructions are often carried out at night; just yesterday, more than ten farms were destroyed in Tanjol Community alone. Based on our estimation, the farmers in these two local governments have lost close to N300 million,” he said.
He stated that the only way out of the terrible situation is an outright ban on open grazing and the dislodgement of herders settlements that have become terrorist enclaves, adding that if open grazing activity is not banned, the killing in Plateau State and in the entire Middle Belt will continue unabated.
On the alleged use of drones, Nwatiri said the use of drones by militias started in 2018 when Jing was attacked and continued with the recent attack in Rawuru Community in Barakin-Ladi local government, where eight people were killed.
“In fact, they have been using drones for surveillance in most of the recent attacks, and they have advanced in using these drones. We never imagined that Fulani would ever use drones,” he stated.
When contacted, the spokesman of Plateau State Police Command, DSP Alfred Alabo, said the Command is not aware but will cross check with the DPO of the two Councils.
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