A former Naval Chief, Vice Admiral Samuel Afolayan, has accused herdsmen of burning down 45 hectares of his farmland located in Kwara State.
In a press conference in Ibbo-Ile, Ekiti LGA of Kwara State on Wednesday, he said herdsmen have been destroying his farm for the past 10 years.
Afolayan disclosed that in the latest spate of destruction, the herdsmen burnt down 20 hectares of orange plantation, 20 hectares of cassava farm and 5 hectares of palm plantation.
He added that the damage on his 500-hectare farm is N200 million.
The ex-Naval boss said he used to think the destruction was not deliberate until he found out that the herdsmen were being sponsored by influential people to destroy his farm.
He said, “The burning of my farmland has become an annual routine. This is the first time of letting people into what has been happening in the last 10 years. It is the cow-rearers that have been damaging my farms, and right now, there are about three cases in court.
“Every year, my farm is burnt and I thought it was not deliberate when it first started. When I realise that those involved are people of low means, I will release them. But along the line I discovered they were being sponsored by people of means.
“Somebody is presently in detention and he is from Zamfara State; the one in court is from Niger State. So most of the damages I have been incurring are from the North. They carry their cows, mindless of the size of what you have or get, and destroy it with impunity.
“No less than 20 hectares of oranges, five hectares of palm trees and 20 hectares of cassava had been burnt or destroyed this year. I am not an expert or a valuer, but my estimation is that the current loss is over N200 million.”