After an attack that saw 11 persons dead and two villages burnt down in Godogodo Chiefdom, Jema’a Local Government Area, LGA, in Southern part of Kaduna State, about two weeks ago, the same alleged gunmen on Saturday, again killed six farmers in Godogodo.
The villagers, who spoke with The Nation, claimed that the gunmen said that their villages have become cattle grazing reserves and wanted them to vacate immediately.
Kaduna State Police Spokesman, ASP, Aliyu Usman, confirmed the murder of the six and revealed that arrests have been made, and that there was tension in the area, but that the police are fully in control of the situation.
According to a journalist who was an early caller to the village, “elder from Godogodo and family of the deceased gave the names of the victims as:
“Monday Hamza, 24, married with 3 children; Toma Masara 35, married and 3 children and Chaka (Waje) Rubutu 26 years, married, 4 children.
“They said that the body of Chaka was still missing.
“The rest are: Linus (Golkofa) 20, married with two children; Julius (Golkofa) 19, married with a child ; Boboo Okocha 18years , single and Sambo (Golkofa) 17, single.”
Another elder said: “Godogodo is full to the brim with refuges who have fled their villages seeking for safety here because it is bigger village, close by an expressway and has better security. I can assure you that there is no day that someone is not killed by Fulani men around here.
“After that, the attack, they would cut down all the crops or herd in their cattle to eat the growing crops. There will be hunger this year in these villages.
“What they are saying is our villages are now cattle grazing reserves and they want everybody out.
“Last Saturday, these youngmen that were killed went out as a group to their farms with a few others. We were told that armed Fulani men had attacked them on their farms, and a few escaped, some with bullet wounds. A search party on Sunday found them ridden with bullets and machetes’ cuts and they were all dead.
“The Police have taken their corpse to Kafanchan mortuary,” he said.
Kaduna State Police Spokesmen, ASP Aliyu Usman, explained that, “Yes it is true that some people were killed in Godogodo on Saturday. There was tension in the place, but now we have deployed our men to all affected areas and we are on top of the situation. We have made some arrests and the suspects are being investigated at our Kafanchan Division.
“We want to advise residents of these areas to be cautions of where they go to. They should also report all suspicious movement to the police,” he said.
