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Widow Of Amotekun Informant: Ondo Govt, Amotekun Have Abandoned Us Since Fulani Herdsmen Killed My Husband

Janet said taking care of six children left behind by her husband has not been easy, adding that one of them is currently on a sickbed.

Janet Olarewaju, wife of Akadiri Olarewaju, an informant for the Ondo State Security Network, better known as Amotekun, killed by suspected Fulani herdsmen says the state government and the security outfit have abandoned the family.

Janet also sought the help of Nigerians in taking care of the six children the deceased left behind.

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SaharaReporters gathered that Olarewaju was recently killed by suspected herdsmen at Ago Sanusi, along Ute Road in Owo, the headquarters of the Owo Local Government Area of the state.

He was said to have been invited by the Amotekun Head of Operations in the LGA, Oluwasesan Adebayo to lead the corps to a forest reserve area before they were ambushed by the gunmen.

A farmer was also killed by the herdsmen during the attack while the operational vehicle and motorcycles belonging to Amotekun and Olarewaju were set ablaze.

Speaking to SaharaReporters, Janet said taking care of six children left behind by her husband has not been easy, adding that one of them is currently on a sickbed.

She said, “He was the Balogun of the vigilante group in Ute road, it was the Amotekun people that came to meet him at home. They came to our house to beg him to follow them to the forest reserve area because he was very familiar with the area.

“Initially, I warned him not to go but he said he so much respected the leader of the Amotekun in Owo named Utako. He even told me to use all the money with me to cook for them. 

“Around 9 pm, some people came to meet me that Fulani herdsmen had kidnapped my husband, I started crying. I saw some Amotekun operatives, I asked them about my husband, they said he had been kidnapped.

“The following day, the police and Amotekun entered the forest and called us to tell us they had found his dead body, unfortunately, they abandoned his body in the forest. Till now, nothing from Amotekun nor the government. They don’t even know how he was buried. Yet, they were the ones that came to take him from his house. 

“They should please help me, I don’t want my children to stop their education, one of my children is currently sick. The government should please help me.”

In January, Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of the state, issued a seven-day quit notice to the herdsmen operating illegally in the state’s forest reserves.

Apart from ejecting the herdsmen, the governor also banned underage grazing, night grazing, and the movement of cattle within the cities and on highways.

The governor had said, "Today, we have taken major steps at addressing the root cause of kidnapping, in particular, and other nefarious activities detailed and documented in security reports, the press, and debriefings from victims of kidnap cases in Ondo State.

"As the chief law and security officer of the state, it is my constitutional obligation to do everything lawful to protect the lives and property of all residents of the state. In light of the foregoing, the following orders are hereby issued: All forest reserves in the state are to be vacated by herdsmen within the next seven days with effect from today, Monday, January 18, 2021."

The issue generated an uproar and after a meeting with different stakeholders, Akeredolu asked herdsmen to register with the government so that they can operate unhindered in the forest reserves.

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Insecurity