Identified as Aliu Bawa, the herdsman and his people were said to have also destroyed the farms of the indigenes who have threatened to retaliate; a situation likely to renew the long-standing tension between the people of Agogo and the herdsmen.
The deceased, 35-year old Akwasi Badu was said to have been shot in his left jaw by the herdsman on January 11 in his farm. His body has since been taken to the morgue.
Member of Parliament for the area, Kojo Baah Agyemang, whose 250-acre plantain farm was also burnt by the fulani herdsmen in Monday’s incident visited the affected communities – Mankara , Bebume , Abrewapong, Bontere – on Wednesday to commiserate with the farmers.
His visit was also to attempt to diffuse the tension that is mounting as the farmers are planning on retaliation and a protest march against the activities of the herdsmen in the area which is affecting their farms, TV3’s Benjamin Aidoo reports.
Although a Kumasi High Court has since 2011 ordered the Ashanti Regional Security Council (REGSEC) to flush out the fulani herdsmen from the Agogo area, that is yet to be completely done, and they continue to destroy the farms of the local people
In January last year, the Ashanti Regional Security Council reactivated ‘Operation Cow Leg’ at Agogo and its environs to check the activities of the nomadic Fulani herdsmen whose cattle have been destroying farms, the Daily Graphic reported.
The operation which was originally initiated in early 2000, was also to ensure that cattle from other regions, particularly the Eastern Region, do not stray into the area for grazing. The reactivation was prompted the havoc the activities of the herdsmen and their cattle were causing in the area.
By 3news.com
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