A cassava farm belonging to the erstwhile Commissioner for Information in Ondo, Eddy Olafeso, has been destroyed by herders while grazing their cattle. 

Mr Olafeso, who raised the alarm in a letter to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, said the destroyed farmland located in Igbaraoke, Ifedore local council area of the state, was worth N10 million. 

Copies of the letter were also sent to the governor’s Senior Special Adviser (SSA) on Agriculture, Akin Olotu, and the Commandant of Amotekun, Adetunji Adeleye. 

Lamenting in the letter, the former commissioner told Mr Akeredolu that the cattles turned his 30 hectares of farmland under the Ondo State Agribusiness Empowerment Center in Igbaraoke into a “grazing field,” destroying all the produce. 

He explained that he and his workers had last year December completed the weeding of the entire plantation, stressing that they were expecting a good harvest in the new year until the destruction occurred. 

“We arrived at our farm in Igbaraoke this morning, 11th January, (Wednesday), 2023 to witness the destruction of our cassava farm by herdsmen. 

“Your Excellency, this case was reported to the Amotekun station at Igbaraoke this morning. These evil herdsmen must be brought to book , otherwise the effect of this insanity will shake the state to its foundation,” an excerpt of the letter obtained on Thursday in Akure read. 

Mr Olafeso added, “The pain inflicted on the family and the millions of naira lost can only be imagined. Our sweat for over one year was taken away just like that.”

The farm manager, Adeola Ariyo, alleged that the herders uprooted the whole cassava for their cattles to feed. 

Mr Ariyo narrated how he joined other workers in clearing and weeding the farm after spending about N600,000 before going for Christmas break but only to return to meet it empty. 

He noted that there were traces of footprints of the cattles and the herdsmen at the cassava farm, revealing that most of the plants were uprooted and fed to the animals. 

“We planned to embark on the harvesting of the cassava and reinvest the money on more capital projects but our hope had been dashed with the destruction of the cassava farm. 

“I was dazed when I got to the farm and see the destruction and i have to call my master to inform him and he was devastated with the news. The incident has been reported to the office of the Amotekun Corps,” Mr Ariyo added 

The Amotekun Corps commandant in Ondo, Mr Adeleye, confirmed the incident, saying that an investigation into the matter had begun.