The Force Commander of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS), Major General Moses Gara, has urged herders across Nigeria to desist from actions that endanger community safety, following a troop operation that halted a potential clash between farmers and herders in Makurdi, Benue State.
OPWS troops, deployed for routine farm-protection duties at Zongo Akiki, arrested two herders on 20 November 2025 after they allegedly crossed into community farmlands and destroyed cultivated crops.
The operation formed part of the joint task force’s increased patrols aimed at securing food-production areas during the harvest season.
According to HQ JTF OPWS spokesman, Lieutenant Ahmed Zubairu, the soldiers acted promptly after observing the intrusion.
He stated that the vigilant personnel “intercepted the two herders after they reportedly led their cattle into cultivated farmlands belonging to local residents, resulting in damage to crops.”
Zubairu explained that the troops’ response aligned with ongoing efforts to protect farmers and stabilise agrarian communities during a period of heightened farm activity.
He added that “The swift intervention prevented further destruction and possible confrontation between the herders and the affected farmers.
“The suspects are currently in custody for further investigation and necessary legal action.”
Major General Gara commended the soldiers for their conduct and highlighted the need for communities to rely on lawful channels when resolving disputes.
He stressed that “violence or reprisal attacks only worsen tensions and jeopardise peaceful co-existence.”
Reinforcing his message to pastoral groups, he warned that “herders needs to be law abiding and refrain from criminal behaviours that threaten law and order.”
Gara reaffirmed OPWS’ ongoing commitment to securing farmlands and sustaining a safe environment for farming and other legitimate livelihoods to thrive across the region.
The farmer-herder conflict which began in the early 1800s after a farmer was allegedly killed by a herder, has worsened progressively.
Initially triggered by competition for resource-grazing land, the conflict has, over the past 10 years, evolved into a complex situation marked by ethnic and religious divisions, fueled by the rise of local militias.
According to the data obtained from the International Crisis Group, its impact on human security was six times deadlier than the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast with over 1,300 deaths between January and June of 2018.
More than 5,000 people have lost their lives since 2015, and the present situation poses a significant threat to food productivity in the state.
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