‘Whether by Insurgents or Bandit-Terrorists, Farm Levies Amount to Takeover’
By Onibiyo Segun
DURUMA, Kwara State — A child was killed and a sibling injured when a suspected roadside explosive detonated on a farm route in Duruma village, Baruten county (Local Government Area), on Saturday, October 24, after residents allegedly rejected a ₦10 million ($7,500) monthly levy demanded by armed men.
The children were taking food to relatives on a farm when the child walking ahead reportedly stepped on the device. The sibling suffered a broken leg. Residents now fear farm paths during harvest.
Residents believe the explosive may have been planted to punish the community for rejecting the demand. That motive and the identity of whoever planted the device remain unconfirmed. Police spokesperson SP Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi had not responded to requests for comment by publication. No official statement had yet identified the perpetrators or confirmed the alleged motive.
“They are planting explosives on the roads to kill our people because we refused to pay them N10 million every month”, Rachel Adejoju told TruthNigeria.
“We can no longer feel safe going to our farms or anywhere. Even children going to deliver food to their parents are now at risk. Nobody knows where the next explosion will happen,” a parent Olawale Akanni said.
This attack goes beyond a demand for money. When armed groups impose recurring levies, threaten those who refuse and endanger farm routes, they seek control over how communities work and survive. Under extremist religious authority, such coercion can amount to ideological and political subjugation not merely criminal extortion.
A January 2026 European Union Agency for Asylum report says Mahmuda financed operations through kidnapping for ransom, forced labour and illegal taxation of herders and farmers. It also records claims that the group collected zakat, allocated land and enforced its own rules. This documents a wider pattern, but does not prove Mahmuda planted the latest explosive.
Analysts say that planting an improvised explosive device on a farm access route after a levy refusal would be a way to block harvests without attacking the village directly.
“If communities pay N10 million monthly to avoid mines, terrorists fund the next attack,” Dr. Amoon Bello, a security analyst based in Abuja, told TruthNigeria. He urged immediate route security.
“When an armed group demands N10 million monthly, dictates access to farmland, and allegedly plants roadside explosives after refusal, killing a child delivering food, do not call it criminal extortion. Call it what it is: terrorist subjugation, jihadist governance.” Retired Army Col. Mudi Attaihiru said in a chat
He went on to say, “I have operated in this theatre. Mahmuda Darul Salam, Sadiku-led Boko Haram, JNIM, they use levy as sharia taxation, zakat forced at gunpoint, to subordinate population and fund jihad. They plant IEDs on farm roads in Baruten, Kaiama, Kemanji, same way Boko Haram mined Pulka-Firgi in Borno killing 13 farmers January 2024. Goal is not money alone. Goal is to tell villagers: state cannot protect you, we control your farm, your road, your harvest, your life. You pay us or you die.”
Duruma has history: Mahmuda attacked June 3 2025 killing three. Now child killed October 24 by IED after levy rejection. That is progression, from raid to taxation to mining of farmland. That is what ISIS did in Syria, what Boko Haram did in Sambisa.
“My answer is clear: this is attempt to impose parallel Islamic authority and replace Nigerian state in Baruten. It tells us ideological objective is territorial control, not robbery, not banditry. And it tells us state has lost control over rural livelihoods if farmers cannot reach farms without stepping on explosives while forest guards deployed since complain they have no allowances, no weapons, no EOD support.” Attaihiru explained.
SaharaReporters attributed a June 2025 attack that killed three people in Duruma to Mahmuda. The EU report says the group’s leader was reportedly arrested in August 2025, making it important not to assume who currently directs any armed operation.
TruthNigeria has previously reported alleged Mahmuda activity around Kainji Lake National Park, including levies and enforcement of rules. In January 2024, it also reported that an improvised explosive device killed 13 farmers on the Pulka-Firgi road in Borno. These incidents warrant urgent investigation, but similar tactics do not prove a shared perpetrator.
“Urgent questions remain: has the scene been secured, have explosive-ordnance-disposal teams swept nearby routes, and have residents been warned? Security agencies should investigate the levy, identify whoever planted the device and secure farm access”, Attaihiru posited.
He advised residents to avoid suspicious objects, move away and alert security personnel.
The child’s death makes the stakes clear. If substantiated, the allegation suggests armed men are trying to make payment a condition of ordinary life. That is coercive rule and must be confronted while responsibility for this blast is established through evidence.
Onibiyo Segun reports on terrorism and conflict for TruthNigeria.
