By Peter Obiechina
Just as the #EndSARS protests surreptitiously crept unto the country, a fresh wave of agitations is slowly, but stealthily, sweeping across some major cities in the country.
This time, the protests centre around renewed cries by natives for bandits masquerading as herdsmen to leave their communities.
Unlike previous instances, women in large numbers, running into thousands, are spearheading the #Fulanimustgo marches.
On Wednesday, February 3, 2021, women from Uromi, Esan North-East Local Government Area of Edo State, took to major roads in the community, loudly bemoaning the spate of rape, kidnap, torture and destruction of their farmlands, allegedly, in the hands of the herdsmen.
Uromi is, notedly, an important commercial stop for travellers from the South South and South East, heading to Kogi, Abuja and the entire northern parts of Nigeria – and vice versa.
Motorists had a hard time navigating through the bedlam, as the women blocked major entry and exit points in the town, chanting anti-herdsmen slogans.
In neighbouring Bayelsa, on the same day, Wednesday, February 3, women from Epie/Atissa community of Yenagoa converged at the Edepie roundabout to protest the alleged excesses of herdsmen.
The junction, a strategic gateway to Amassoma, host community of the Niger Delta University, witnessed severe traffic jam, with the women brandishing green leaves and chanting, “Enough is enough; herdsmen must leave our farmlands.”
Over the last two weeks, tension has steadily built up over the vexed issues of kidnapping, rape and destruction of farmlands, with the Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, issuing a seven-day ultimatum to herdsmen who occupy Ondo forest reserves to quit.
In Oyo State too, anxiety peaked as the people of Ibarapa evicted the Seriki Fulani of the area, on allegations of conniving with herdsmen to wreck havoc on their community.
Only on Tuesday, February 2, Alhaji Bashir Tofa, presidential candidate of the defunct National Republican Convention, NRC, in the June 12, 1993 elections, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently intervene in the flurry of quit notices to herdsmen in southern Nigeria.
Tofa cautioned that should his plea be ignored, reprisal actions, which would threaten the country’s unity, might follow.
On the other hand, Governor Ganduje of Kano State suggested a law banning the movement of cattle from the north to the southern parts of the country.
As it stands, however, the government, citizens say, must act fast and decisively to stem the creeping feeling of helplessness among the citizenry.