Police speaks on alleged planned invasion of Abia by herdsmen

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Police speaks on alleged planned invasion of Abia by herdsmen

The Police in Abia said on Tuesday that the state was safe and that no community was under the threat of suspected herdsmen.
Mr Ogbonnaya Nta, the Public Relations Officer of Abia Police Command, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Umuahia.

He described media report of attacks on some communities in the state by herdsmen as spurious.

He said that some detachments of the police had investigated the alleged invasion by herdsmen and discovered that no such thing happened.

It was reported in some media that suspected herdsmen on Saturday attacked and sacked Abala community in Obingwa Local Government Area of the state.

The report further stated that the herdsmen destroyed the community’s farms and molested the farmers, especially women.

“When we saw the report, the commissioner of police dispatched a team, which I led, to conduct a search in the area.

“At Abala, the Divisional Police Office in the area, Musa, a Superintendent of Police, joined me with his team and we searched the whole area and there was no trace of the suspected herdsmen in the area.

He challenged the community leaders to come forward and take the police to the area allegedly invaded and occupied by the herdsmen.

Nta also debunked the report of a similar invasion of Amaba Community in Ikwuano LGA by herdsmen.

According to him, the herdsmen merely led their cattle through Amaba community and the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike’s demonstration farm to the slaughter at Ubakala in Umuahia South LGA.

He said that a similar movement took place at Alayi and Ugwueke in Bende LGA, saying that the herdsmen only passed through the route to graze their cattle.

“They were only passing-by, they did not settle there, except that when it was night, they stayed in one place and continued their movement the following morning.

“They were not armed with any gun or dangerous weapons and did not molest or attack the residents,” Nta said.

He admonished the people to be careful in raising alarms of being attacked, saying that it was wrong for them “to cry wolves were there was none.”The police spokesman said that the state was safe and urged the people to go about their normal businesses without any fear of molestation. (NAN)