Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde and his Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State paid a visit to the crisis embroiled Shaha community in Ibadan, Oyo State on Sunday to sue for peace.
The governors urged a return to calm and peaceful coexistence between the Hausa community and their Yoruba hosts.
There were reports of an alleged clash between members of the Yoruba and Hausa communities on Friday, resulting in the death of scores and the destruction of properties worth a fortune.
Akeredolu and Makinde while addressing the people at the Shasha market and the palace of the Baale Shasha asked residents to desist from taking laws into their hands.
The Oyo State governor, Makinde pledged to give palliatives to traders whose wares were destroyed during the crisis, urging the factions to shun violence and embrace peace.
Makinde said, “You cannot resort to self-help to solve the issue on the ground. All of you who are here are doing business with one another in one way or the other.
“The last time I came here, about six weeks ago, some shops belonging to Hausa and Yoruba people got burnt. So, you have been living together peacefully and all I am pleading to you is, no matter what is making anyone angry, we will solve it with patience.
“I was reluctant to declare curfew here because I feel the economic well being of everyone here is important, and because this is where you get what you use to feed yourselves. I will engage with your leaders this evening.
“One thing is, if you allow those who don’t have anything to lose here to blow this matter out of proportion, no one will be able to say where the crisis will end. By the grace of God, I pray we don’t lose any more lives.”
In his address, Akeredolu, who said he was in Oyo State on behalf of the South-West governors, asked every aggrieved party to eschew violence.
He said, “I have come here on behalf of my colleagues in Ekiti, Lagos, Osun and Ogun. All of them have sent messages. Ogun has its own crisis it is battling with, so does Lagos. But as the chairman, I decided to come around to appeal to us.
“We have security agencies that you can call their attention to any issue that could cause crisis. Let us not take law into our hands. I have a brother in Abuja and others living in Hausa land.”