Women from Obinolu Ngodo in Umunneochi Local Government Area of Abia State have protested at the council secretariat over alleged destruction of their farms by herdsmen.
The women, who came from different villages in the community, accused herders of uprooting cassava tubers from their farms and feeding them to cattle.
They also alleged that large herds of cattle had trampled on other crops they planted, raising concerns over possible food shortages in the community.
The protesters, who arrived at the Umunneochi Local Government headquarters in Nkwoagu with cassava stems they said were uprooted from their farms, claimed the alleged attacks had persisted for several weeks.
The women said the situation had become so serious that many farmers were now afraid to visit their farms because of the presence of herdsmen.
Some of the placards carried by the protesters read, “Our people may die of hunger,” “We are now afraid to enter our farms,” “We don’t want Fulani herdsmen in our farms,” and “Government, save us now.”
The women urged the government to intervene urgently, warning that continued destruction of their crops could worsen food insecurity in the area.
Addressing the protesters, the Chairman of Umunneochi Local Government Area, Sunny Afurobi, said he had received similar reports of farm destruction from another community in the council area.
Afurobi assured the women that the council would investigate the allegations and take steps to address the situation.
He said the state government was committed to protecting residents and had been taking security concerns seriously.
“We will investigate the problem because we cannot abandon our farms,” the chairman assured the protesters.