AKURE— TWO traditional rulers in Ondo State, the Onigedegede of Gedegede in Akoko North-West Council Area, Oba Walidu Sanni and the Iresi of Osi, in Akure North Council Area, Oba David Olajide have raised the alarm over invasion by herdsmen in their domains. herdsmen Pandemonium, as armed herdsmen invade Imo community(Opens in a new browser tab) While Oba Sanni in Akoko North-West specifically raised alarm over threat to his life by herdsmen, Oba Olajide in Akure North said he escaped being kidnapped by six herdsmen. Narrating his ordeal, Oba Sanni said that nine herdsmen stormed his palace, harassed and threatened him because he reported the continued destruction of his subjects’ farm produce and farmlands to the police. He pointed out that he reported the case to the police after he seized a gun and a cutlass which he handed over to the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in Okeagbe, Johnson Akintola. According to him, a stakeholders’ parley initiated by the state government doused tension in the council area as his subjects were poised for a showdown with the herdsmen. He said: “Government’s timely intervention saved the situation from becoming bloody.” The traditional ruler noted that the incident was reported to the Chairman of Akoko North-West Local Government, Mr. Samson Akande and his colleagues, who are traditional rulers in the area. I escaped being kidnapped by herdsmen— Oba Olajide Also speaking, the Iresi of Osi, Oba Olajide said he narrowly escaped being kidnapped by six herdsmen. Oba Olajide said he was attacked by the herdsmen while coming from the Police Command Headquarters in Akure where his subjects, a mother and her step son ran to after escaping from the kidnappers’ den. The Oba said that his subjects, Mrs. Olawumi Adeleye, (25) and her step-son, Destiny Paul, (14), were kidnapped on the Akure- Obaile-Airport road on their way to church. They reportedly escaped from the kidnappers’ den when the kidnappers were asleep. Vanguard gathered that they ran to Eleyowo village and thereafter to Araromi community. The head of the Araromi community later took the duo to the state police headquarters after they explained to them how they were kidnapped on Sunday and how they escaped. Acting on information, the traditional ruler led other Chiefs of the community to the police headquarters to see his subjects only to be attacked on his way back by the armed herdsmen. Oba Olajide told Vanguard that the kidnappers flooded the highway with their cows and while he was waiting for the cows to leave the highway, six armed men emerged from the bush and attacked him and his vehicle. He said that the kidnappers thought that he was the only one in the tinted vehicle but were disappointed when other occupants alighted from the car which made them to escape into the bush. According to him, one of the herders was arrested while attempting to run into the bush. Oba Olajide said that the kidnappers collected N400,000 ransom after the duo had escaped from their captivity.