President of the Middle-Belt Forum, Pogu Bitrus, has condemned the rejection of the bill sponsored by Senator Titus Tartenger (APC Benue North West) for the establishment of ranches for herders in their states of origin.
The forum also said it was perplexed with the position held by National President of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), Baba Ngelzarma, against the bill, who in an interview recently, reportedly said: “The bill is suspicious and should not be allowed to stand because it is sponsored from a senator from Benue State.”
Ngelzarma also rejected the bill, saying in his interview that the former governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, had enacted an anti-open grazing law, which according to him, had done harm to both pastoralists and farmers.
While reacting to Ngelzarma’s position, the forum said the stance of those opposing the bill, was narrow-minded and should be discarded.
Birtus noted: “The Middle-Belt Forum condemns in the strongest term the narrow-minded and sectional viewpoint of MACBAN as a recipe for disaster.”
This is in view of the fact that livestock rearing or animal husbandry is a business in which every citizen has the freewill to embark upon or not, and as such, the restriction of herders to their states of origin to stem criminal activities does not violate their constitutional right to freedom of movement.
“Furthermore, the lingering food insecurity, which has made life miserable for Nigerians, is significantly connected to the insecurity that herders have unleashed on farming communities, forcing farmers to abandon their farmlands for fear of being killed.
“Added to the above is the fact that herders deliberately move their cattle into cultivated farmlands and destroy crops planted by farmers.”
The forum, however, drew the attention of the Senate to the provisions of the Land Use Act, which bestows on governors the sole right over land in their states.
It said: “In this regard, a community-based approach will be significantly productive as communities can identify local Fulani, who have been inhabitants over time, as opposed to the invading Fulani terrorists, who masquerade as herdsmen and unleash mayhem on our people in the Middle-Belt region.”
While expressing its acceptance of the bill and the reason it should be passed into law, the forum stated: “We align ourselves with the bill, which is conceived in the best interest of the public, and therefore unanimously, commend the Senate for passing the bill at its second reading.
“The security and welfare of the citizenry remains the primary purpose of government and laws should be a reflection of the collective will of the citizens, which the Senate has demonstrated by passing this bill at its second reading.
“We urge the Senate to consider the national interest of the country and focus on the merits of the bill, which will guarantee food security and reduce crime in the society, rather than the self-centred pedestrianism of MACBAN, which is rooted in barbarism.”
