FrontNaija News | June 25, 2025
Tragedy has struck the quiet Ueken community in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State, as a local farmer identified as Goodluck Dimkpa was gruesomely murdered by suspected Fulani herdsmen while working on his farmland.
According to eyewitness accounts, Dimkpa had gone to tend his crops in the early hours of Tuesday, only for his lifeless body to be discovered by fellow villagers later in the day. The nature of the attack and the pattern of injuries strongly suggest the involvement of armed herders — a growing threat in several parts of the Niger Delta.
The incident has sparked outrage and sorrow among residents, with family members and local leaders calling on the Rivers State Government to intervene urgently and ensure that justice is served. They are also demanding that Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s administration take swift action to bolster rural security in agrarian communities, which they say are increasingly vulnerable to attacks and intimidation.
“We cannot continue like this,” said a community youth leader who pleaded for anonymity. “Our farmers are no longer safe. If this continues, we will be forced to take our destinies into our own hands.”
The Dimkpa family, visibly shaken by the tragedy, has appealed to the authorities for immediate investigation and prosecution of those responsible. They also urged security agencies to increase surveillance and patrols in the area to prevent further loss of life.
This murder adds to a disturbing trend of farmer-herder clashes that are gradually spilling into the southern states, particularly in the Niger Delta region, once relatively shielded from the northern herdsmen crisis.
A Crossroad for the Niger Delta
The killing has reignited a wider debate on the future of rural security and land protection in the oil-rich Niger Delta. Communities are now grappling with the dual burden of environmental degradation from oil activities and the rising fear of violence from foreign cattle herders.
My dear Niger Deltans, what is the way forward?
How long will our people continue to suffer in silence while our farmlands become graveyards? Can we truly feed ourselves when our farmers are being hunted like animals?
It is time for a united voice, proactive policies, and community-driven security strategies to safeguard our heritage, our people, and our land.
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