By Kamil Opeyemi
The Police Command in Benue State on Saturday refuted the news circulating in social media that a rural farmer in Kwande Local Government Area of the State killed a lion.
While describing social media news report as “fake”, the command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Catherine Anene said that yearly people post the same picture of the killing of a lion on the social media.
She added that there was no element of truth in the report
“It is not true; there is no element of truth about that. They post that picture every year. The same picture was posted last year. There is nothing like that. It is a lie”, she said.
She further warned the public against circulating fake news, adding that those behind such acts will be punished.
Also, the Director-General, Services and Administration (DGSA), Kwande Local Government Area, Mrs Kate Atsaga, also said that no lion was killed in the area.
Atsaga, who is the acting chairman of the Council following the suspension of the elected chairman by the State House of Assembly, said the social media reports were nothing but fake.
She said that she has not received any information about the killing of a lion by a Kwande resident.
“I don’t know about it. I have never heard of it and I go to the office everyday and have never heard such information of a native of Kwande killing a lion.
“Yes, we may have security issues around the Shangev -Ya axis involving Mbakya and Mzev which has already led to the arrest of two traditional rulers.
“But, on the killing of a lion nobody has told me about somebody killing a rat not to talk of lion”, she said
Corroborating the statements of the Police and DGSA, the State Commandant of Agro Rangers a unit of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Mr Iorlaha Agwaza also said that no lion was killed.
Agwaza explained that his men visited the General Hospital, Adikpo, where the said lion killer was receiving treatment from injuries from the alleged encounter with the lion.
According to him, the visit showed that was no patient of that nature at the hospital as claimed in the social media reports.
“This is not true. My men even visited the General Hospital Adikpo where it was reported that the lion killer was receiving treatment but discovered that there was nothing of that nature at the hospital.
“We read on-line sometimes ago that the incident allegedly took place in Uganda”, he said.