BY ANKELI EMMANUEL, Sokoto –
No fewer than five villagers have been killed by bandits, who attacked Takakume Village of Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
It was gathered by our correspondent that the incident occured in the late hours of Sunday, 8th May, 2022.
The perpetrators according to the accounts of the locals are Fulani herdsmen, who have stayed with them for a while and they trusted them as well.
Having suffered attacks and another aborted one in recent time, the locals of Takakume village like most of their counterparts had formed vigilantes to ward off bandits and defend them as well.
During the said attack, it was learnt that the vigilantes repelled them leading to the death of one of their members whom the locals recognised his corpse as one of the Fulani boys whom they knows his parents and grand parents as well.
Two of the bandits who also sustained gunshots from the locals were dumped within Gundomi forest and were recovered by the locals before they handed over to security agencies the next day as confirmed by a reliable source.
Speaking to our correspondent on the development, one of the bereaved locals, said: “We are still in shock over how those we lived together for years would wake up overnight and attack us without any provocation”.
“These people are Fulanis that have lived around our community for ages. We lived in peace. Though, other villages that have suffered attacks have continued to warn us about these people. But we refused to take them serious because we trusted them as our neighbours. But Alas, we were all wrong. They attacked and kill our loved ones mercilessly”.
Expressing worries over how the Eastern Senatorial axis of Sokoto State has become theatre of gory tales orchestrated by these bandits lately, another local wrote on his Facebook wall that the killing of four innocent women and one man was the worst form of barbarism.
The message as he coined it and captured by our correspondents reads, “What happened in Takakume on the night of Sunday, 8th May, 2022 was one of the most horrific display of barbarism by Fulani bandits that attacked the peace loving community.
“Five women and a man were lined up and shot for no reason by persons who lived around their community. Takakume is the only settlement in that area where Fulani were free to enter and go out without fear of being attacked.
“They have betrayed the trust. May Allah bring a quick end to these bloodlettings”.
Meanwhile, efforts to get police confirmation at the time of filing this report was unsuccessful as the State Police spokesperson promised to call back but never did.
Also, when contacted for comment, The Goronyo Local Government Council Chairman, Hon Abdulwahab Yahaya did not pick up his call nor returned it either.
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