January 31, (THEWILL) – Obasanjo Farms located in Howe, Gwer local government area of Benue State, has been gutted by fire.
The chairman of the Gwer LGA, Emmanuel Otserga, who confirmed the incident, disclosed that over half of the mango farm, which is over 139 hectares of land, has been razed.
According to him, “about 2pm on Saturday, we received a report that the Obasanjo mango farm located at Howe was on fire and I quickly informed all the stakeholders including traditional rulers and we swiftly moved there even the Fire Service also came but by the time we will put out the fire, over half of the farm was already razed.
“However, from the look of things, the fire was caused by the deliberate act of mischief makers, because the way that farm is safeguarded, there is no way fire can crossover from any quarter into the farm.”
Otserga also said that a meeting with all stakeholders in the area including traditional rulers was summoned to investigate and unravel those behind the act, adding that already four persons have been arrested in connection with the incident.
When contacted, the State Director, Benue State Fire Service, Donald Ikyaaza, said
As soon as the news of the fire incident reached him, he deployed his men to the area to put out the fire and prevent it from causing further damage.
The Police spokesperson in the State, Cathrine Anene, also confirmed the incident, but said she was not sure of any arrest so far.
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