Tension has gripped the Onoli community in Ugwuleshi Autonomous Area, Awgu Local Government of Enugu State, following the death of a young farmer, Onuchukwu Ogbaki, who was allegedly attacked by suspected Fulani herdsmen on Friday.
Community sources said the attack was the latest in a series of violent incidents that have driven many residents of Obuovia village away from their farmlands, heightening fear and insecurity in the area.
A relative of the deceased, Sampson Okolie, told PUNCH Metro on Sunday that Ogbaki, aged about 30, succumbed to his injuries around 2 a.m. on Saturday at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, where he was taken for treatment.
“It is true Fulani herdsmen killed our brother,” Okolie said. “He went to check his farm along the Enugu–Port Harcourt Highway, near the boundary between Enugu and Abia states, when he was attacked.
The herdsmen have already forced most of our people to abandon their farms, and only a few still go there.”
Confirming the incident, the President-General of Ugwuleshi Autonomous Community, Mr. Aaron Chidi Osu, said the case had been officially reported to the Enugu State Police Command.
“It is no longer news that Fulani herdsmen have been attacking our community,” Osu said. “As it stands, our people live in fear because they can’t access their farmlands.
We are appealing to the state government to intervene and end these recurring attacks.”
Residents have called for urgent government action to protect lives and property, warning that continued insecurity could devastate farming and livelihood in the area.
Efforts to reach the spokesperson of the Enugu State Police Command, SP Daniel Ndukwe, for comment were unsuccessful as he neither answered calls nor replied to text messages.