The irate farmers want action over unprovoked attacks
Afram Plains Farmers Association at Maame Krobo in Kwahu Afram Plains South District has called for the formation of a task force to help deal with rampant attacks on farmers by herdsmen.
The Association appealed to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to take their request seriously and deploy the team that would make up the task force to the district immediately.
Addressing journalists on rampant unprovoked attacks on farmers in the area, Mr Frederick Naale, spokesperson of the farmers, noted that although the government had provided two fodder banks at Wawase, Ekye Amanfrom and Donkorkrom to curb the menace years ago, cattle owners had refused to send their animals to be confined.
“The fodder banks having been created. We heaved a sigh of relief because we thought cattle that were ravaging our farms would be kept in the fodder banks to put an end to the annual occurrences but disappointingly, the fodder banks lie idle.”
He said the annual occurrence of the Fulanis herding their cattle to ravage farms had been going on for decades and called for immediate re-operationalize of the fodder banks at Donkorkrom and Wawase to keep the cattle from destroying farm produce.
Mr Naale, therefore, appealed to the IGP to form an “anti-Fulani taskforce” to avert any plausible confusion likely to transpire between local farmers and Fulani herdsmen in future.
Akyemfour Asiedu Agyemang III, the Chief of Abetifi and the Adontenhene of Kwahu Traditional Area, commended the framers for condoning immoral activities that Fulani herdsmen meted out to them and encouraged that they continue to maintain the peace and order that had always prevailed in the community.
He said none of the traditional authorities on his stool lands, including the Afram Plains, had availed any land to any Fulani herdsmen and, therefore, entreated anyone to report any such case to the traditional authorities.
Together with his leaders, he said, he would do everything possible to have a meeting with the newly confirmed District Chief Executives to ensure the cattle ranches become re-operationalised to put an end to the menace.
Farmers who spoke to the Ghana News Agency said “We have reached our limit of patience,” and threatened to retaliate “if the government do not intervene as expected.”