A farmer identified as Yakubu Bitrus has lost a hand after a group of Fulani herdsmen allegedly attacked him and cut off one of his hands after he allegedly declined their earlier request to help lift a cow that had fallen into a ditch and was trapped.
Bitrus, who narrated his ordeal in a video clip shared on social media platforms on Friday in Agingi community of Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State, recounted how the herders attacked him after he initially declined their request to help lift the cow.
The farmer, who narrated the incident while receiving treatment in a hospital, said the attack occurred as he and two women were returning from the farm.
He explained that the incident happened on Friday after he and the women arrived at their farm and worked until it was time to take a meal break.
He said during the break, a young herder approached them and said one of his cows had fallen and requested their assistance in getting the animal back on its feet.
Bitrus said he explained to the herder that he was the only man with two women at the time and couldn’t leave them to go and help him remove the fallen cow.
He said he advised the herder to contact other farmers nearby so that everyone could work together to lift the cow.
“The Fulani herder rejected my suggestion and insisted that the three of us should follow him immediately. He feared that the animal might die and warned me that if the cow dies, there would be a problem,” Bitrus said.
He narrated further that the situation suddenly became hostile when the herder began insulting him before chasing him with a stick and a cutlass.
“I had already noticed another person hiding nearby and realising that the herder was possibly not alone, I decided against confronting him and we ran away to avoid any fight,” he said.
He stated that they eventually found other people and returned to the area as a group to help the herders rescue the cow but noted that when they arrived, neither the herders nor the animal could be found.
“After waiting for about five minutes, we left for our different farms not knowing that the herdsmen had concealed themselves and were watching me and the two women from the point where we separated from the larger group.”
According to the farmer, on their way home after they had finished the day’s work, the attackers descended upon him and his wife.
“As we were going home, my wife decided to leave the road briefly to gather some firewood while I remained on the road with the other woman while waiting for her.”
Moments later, he said, he heard his wife screaming from the direction she had taken and he rushed to find out what could have happened to her, only to find the attackers assaulting her and striking her on the head.
Bitrus said he picked up a piece of wood and confronted the herdsmen and a struggle followed as he attempted to defend himself, protect his wife and create an opportunity to escape.
He said they initially fought with sticks but before he knew it, other herders came out from the bush and joined the others in beating him, with one of them using a machete to sever his hand before they fled into the bush.
