The Taraba State Government, on Thursday, reportedly returned 198 cows to their rightful owners in Jalingo, following their recovery from cattle rustlers.
OsunDailyNG understands that the chairman of the Taskforce Committee responsible for the recovery of stolen cattle, Dr Aminu Jauro, oversaw the handover of the animals in Jalingo.
He reported that a total of 222 cows and 58 sheep had been recovered.
In his capacity as the Chairman of Jalingo Local Government Area and the state’s Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Jauro emphasized that this achievement was made possible through collaboration with security agencies and local hunters.
He noted that, after a thorough evaluation of 52 cattle owner groups, the committee identified and agreed to return 198 cows to their owners, leaving 24 cows still unaccounted for.
The chairman indicated that the owners of the returned cows were from the Ardo Kola Local Government Area and assured that the committee would continue to raise public awareness to encourage the remaining owners to claim their cows.
OsunDailyNG recalls that an All Progressives Congress (APC) councillorship aspirant, Amedu Agaba, and four others were killed in the first week of February during a violent clash between armed herdsmen and locals in Okpomaju village, Okete Ward, Otukpo Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State.
The recent deadly attack also left several persons injured, while at least 10 others have been declared missing as panic spreads across the community.
The latest violence followed an earlier attack in the same community at the beginning of the week when suspected herdsmen allegedly mistook local hunters for enemies, leading to the killing of three residents.
In response, the Och’Otukpo Odu, Chief John Eimonye, summoned Fulani leaders and Okpomaju community heads to a peace meeting to prevent further bloodshed.
However, despite initial agreements to embrace peace, the crisis escalated on Wednesday night when armed herdsmen reportedly stormed the community, firing indiscriminately.
According to a source who spoke with Vanguard, the renewed hostilities have forced residents of Okpomaju and nearby communities—including Odudaje, Amla, Emichi, Otukpo-Icho, and Otada (home to the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo)—to flee their homes for safety.
