Herders’ Grazing Wrecks Widow’s Farm in Enugu Community, Graduate Daughter Cries Out for Help
A young lady from Nimbo community in Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu State, Ugwu Christiana Chioma, has appealed to government and well-meaning Nigerians for urgent assistance after her family’s farm was allegedly devastated by cattle herders grazing freely in the area.
The farm, spanning several hectares and cultivated with cassava and other food crops, was reportedly destroyed when cattle strayed into the fields, leaving what Ms Chioma described as “a once-productive farm reduced to a grazing field.”
Speaking to journalists on the incident, the School of Health graduate said the destruction has dealt a severe blow to her family’s already fragile means of survival. Unemployed after completing her training, she said she had returned home to support her widowed mother by farming, with hopes of raising capital to start a small business.
“I am a graduate of a school of health, but there are no jobs,” she said. “I joined my mother, who is a widow, on this farm so we could raise money for my upkeep and to start a small business. All our hopes were tied to this farm.”
A view of parts of the wrecked farm
According to her, significant funds were invested in clearing the land and hiring labourers to cultivate cassava and other crops, only for the entire effort to be wiped out within a short period.
“We spent a lot of money hiring labourers to prepare and plant the farm. Seeing everything destroyed like this is heartbreaking. It has rendered all our sacrifices useless,” she lamented.
Ms Chioma also expressed concern over the safety of her family and other residents, alleging that repeated incursions by herders have heightened fear in the community. She claimed that incidents of kidnapping in the area are often linked by locals to suspected armed herders, a situation she said has discouraged many farmers from returning to their fields.
“My mother has been traumatised by this incident. Beyond the loss of the farm, we now live in fear. Many farmers are no longer going to their farms because of kidnappings and attacks allegedly linked to these herders,” she said.
Calling for urgent intervention, she appealed to the Enugu State Government, security agencies and humanitarian organisations to come to the aid of affected farmers in Nimbo and surrounding communities.
“We are helpless. I am appealing to the government and good-spirited individuals to help us survive and to protect us. Farming is all we have, and without security, we have nothing,” she added.
Nimbo community has, in recent years, been among areas in Enugu North Senatorial District that have raised concerns over clashes between farmers and herders, as well as broader security challenges in rural communities.
Efforts to reach local authorities and relevant security agencies for comments on the incident was unsuccessful, as at the time of filing this report.
EDITOR
Sam Udekwe is a journalist working in the News and Current Affairs department, Enugu State Broadcasting Service (ESBS) Enugu. He is well trained in all genres of journalistic venture.
Mr Sam read Mass Communication, graduating all with Distinction in National Diploma, Higher National Diploma and Postgraduate Diploma at IMT, Enugu and Madonna University, Okija, Anambra state, as well as M.Sc Mass Communication with Second Class(Upper Division) at National Open University of Nigeria.
He is the immediate past NUJ Chairman, Enugu state.
samowailo@gmail.com
