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Tag: cattle colonies

  • Miyetti Allah opts for cattle colony, rejects ranching in Nasarawa

    Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), said it preferred the establishment of cattle colonies to ranching system as a solution to the end farmers/herdsmen crisis in Nasarawa state.

    The state MACBAN chairman, Husseini Muhammed, made this known in a town hall meeting in Lafia, saying the ranching system is expensive and very difficult to manage.

    Preferring cattle colony, he said it is cheaper, affordable and is inclined with the norms, culture and tradition of Fulani herdsmen.

    Hussein, who described his Fulani kinsmen as peaceful and law abiding people of this country, blamed the anti-open grazing law in Benue state as being responsible for the clashes seen in recent times between herders and the Tiv farmers.

    Read Also:Killings: Court asked to declare Fulani herdsmen, Miyetti Allah terrorists

    He stated, “We have lost over 60 herdsmen and thousands of our cows also are nowhere to be found, they got lost due to hunger, while others were killed by the Tiv people from Benue state”.

    In a related development, the Tiv Development Association through its chairman, Mr Boniface Effe accused Fulani herdsmen of rendering havoc on Tivs communities for no just cause than the anti-open grazing law in Benue which does not have anything to do with Nasarawa state.

    Mr Boniface said: “Over 200 people lost their lives, while 8570 houses were destroyed in all the attacks carried out this year by suspected Fulani herdsmen.”

    He called on the Federal Government to facilitate the process for Tiv people to return to their homes and begin this year’s farming.

    He however, appreciated Governor Tanko Almakura for providing them with relief materials, expressing confidence that no distant time they will all return to their ancestral homes.

  • No cattle colonies, please

    The quest for solutions to Africa’s myriad of problems as exemplified by Nigeria “The Giant of Africa” is conceptualised as a disease in this piece. The need to seek for answers in African Cultural strength that have sustained life on the continent for centuries before colonisation is  advocated as home grown solution..

    It is equally necessary but carefully as I connect the dots on Africa’s problems with the global world of which it was woven into through colonisation. I urge writers, journalists, analyst and commentators to be above board in parroting the dissenting voices of politicians divided along fault lines.

    It is against this critical backdrop that I challenge the political elites and ethnic chauvinists to be altruistic about contentious national debates. The campaign for cattle colonies in Nigeria today is anachronistic with the dynamics of time and change globally.

    If the political elites within their parochial self centered interest deem it fit to push for such as a lasting solution to a lingering violent conflict, then such colonies must be advocated for the army of beggars migrating from the northern parts of the country swamping towns and cities in the southern parts.

    It is on this premise that I once again challenge those who seize every opportunity to beat the frenzied drums of violence to embark on intensive research for better lasting solutions. There cannot be lasting solutions to malingering social problems when you refuse to find out the root causes and diagnoses before cure.

    A deeper understanding of the cause of a symptom would lead to a proper diagnosis for a cure. Cattle herding and farming both  a twin arms of agriculture are historically antithesis due to the overarching dependency of the former on the later for feeding and survival. Farmers grow crops, shepherds rear animals by grazing them on grasses and crops alike. Even amongst the ancient Jews society, this composite antithesis was a cause of constant strife.

    Across the world from ancient historical accounts, conflicts culminating in violent clashes between shepherds and farmers are legendary. They are the two determinants political economies of most agrarian societies. Here lies the crux of the matter, how comes in Nigeria politicians suddenly wake to the reality of cattle colonies when the global standard is cattle ranching?

    The answer can be located at the same point where the ignominious issue of a beggar nation is. How come multitude of people over many generations would be ingloriously notorious for alms begging in the face of affluence? In economics, the fundamental factors of poverty identified culture, religion, geographical location, norms, values and social attitudes amongst others.

    Some of these factors are glaring in the twin social problems of migrant herdsmen and beggars who in constant search of greener pasture literally and figuratively encroaching other people’s territories with impunity. Encroachment of other territories indiscriminately amounts to expansionist motive leading to conquest. This is a known fact of history in the pre-colonial fused societies of Africa, especially when accompanied with killing.

    • A. A. Ogbu

    National Convener Generation for Revolutionary Change

  • What’s wrong with cattle colonies?

    What’s wrong with cattle colonies?

    What’s wrong with cattle colonies?  Nothing except the politics of meaning.  That starts with passing “colony” to mean “colonization”.  That is nothing but lexical fraud.

    Much of the old Greek states started as colonies on the Crete islands.  These Greeks of old just fled, from their mainland, as a result of land hunger; and settled on these islands as Greek communities.

    So, they were Greek colonies.  But antiquity never charged the Greeks with colonization, in the later sense of the British, French, etc, subjugating their colonial peoples.

    Then, there is the explosive menu of mixing business with politics; and its attendant raw and destructive hysteria.  Yoruba history provides a prime example in the “Two Pepper War” (1821-1827).  It was between the Owu and the confederacy of Ife, Oyo and Ijebu.

    According to Owu records, an Ijebu woman had accused an Owu seller, at Apomu market, of stealing two alligator pepper, from one of six sacks she had bought.  Apomu is in present-day Osun. That alarm led to a six-year war!

    Why? You guessed right — the politicization of business.  The Owu were opposed to slave trade.  But from this booming trade, some Ife, Ijebu and Oyo lobbies were making hay.  The Owu, a warrior people, felt they could use their military might to smash it. But the opposition confederates decided to call their bluff.  Because of “two allegator pepper” however, the Owu got sacked from Owu Ipole, and got scattered all over Yorubaland!

    See how explosive a politics-business cocktail can be?

    The anti-Fulani hysteria, leading to the fashionable condemnation of cattle colonies without thinking, is another prime example of mixing politics with business.  Instead of a win-win that business opportunities most times are, business poisoned with politics — and this time, the explosive ethnic hue — portends a lose-lose for everyone.

    The Fulani in Nigerian history, no thanks to British perfidy and greed, may have earned due notoriety in political domination.  The criminals among the cattle herders have for long given the Fulani added bad name, by their combative ignorance and murderous impunity.

    Still, that is no reason to demonize the livestock business.  It is even dafter to, because of Fulani hatred, lock up your mind and throw away the key into the Atlantic Ocean.  Yet, the subject, taboo to your mind, might be a possible solution to the herdsmen-farmers’ clashes that have resulted in too much blood and gore!  What if it works?

    Cattle colonies can never be evil, just because a lot of people hate the Fulani.  It is only a colony of ranches, concentrated on a particular vast piece of land.

    If it portends a gradual end to itinerary animal husbandry, then it’s worth some consideration.  If herders have their space, does it not logical promise less herder-farmer clashes; and their attendant ethnic tensions? Besides, its a systemic way of assuring both herders and farmers equal opportunity to ply their trade.  Shorn of emotive politics, and other things being equal, it’s likely to be win-win.

    So, let the Federal Government continue to sell the benefits; and offer cast iron guarantees against future abuse.

    But let others too open their minds, beyond emotive but sterile ethnic hysteria.  If you consume beef, you should care about how far or near the market is.  That is where the cliche of making Sambisa Forest the sole cattle colony misses the point.

    Cattle colonies could be promising economic growth areas — how otherwise fallow ancestral lands can make yearly money for the natives, while at the same time assuring a cattle mart — and ranch — as near as possible.

    Isn’t proximity to market one of the critical points in basic Economics “location of industries”?

  • Buhari: I don’t have powers to create cattle colonies

    President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday denied the Federal Government has concluded plans to create cattle colony across the nation.

    He said he has no powers to give lands for grazing reserves in states.

    Buhari, who spoke at the South-South interactive meeting of Buhari Support Group in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, said the office of the President under the 1978 Land Use Act has no control of lands in states, except in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

    Represented by his Special Adviser in National Assembly Affairs, Senator Ita Enang, Buhari noted only state lawmakers can create reserve through legislation after assent by governors.

    Enang said: “There is no law in Nigeria now before the President to sign to create grazing reserve because he does not have land to give.

    “Therefore, the President does not, cannot and will not give land to any herdsmen for grazing reserve because he is not the governor of the state.”

    He explained: “When Nigeria was one entity, there were cattle routes, which ran from Lake Chad Republic to the Atlantic Ocean.

    “When she became three regions, there were cattle routes in each of the regions. When it became a state, each of the states made laws as to how to graze animals.

    “When it became a problem in 1978 under Olusegun Obasanjo as Head of State in March 28, the Land Use Act was made.

    “Under the Land Use Act, the President of Nigeria has control of land in Abuja only. Under the Act, each state governor by sections 1(2) of the Act said that lands in each of the state of the federation in the covered area shall be vested in the governor of that state.”

    He added:  “Furthermore sub-section 1 (2) (b), said lands in the rural areas shall be vested in the Local Government Chairman of that local government.

    “Then in section 6, the Act stated that it shall be within the competence of the Local Government Chairman to give land for agricultural purposes including grazing purposes and sub-section 51 defined  grazing  purposes to be the purposes of planting grasses for animals.

    “Going by this, the President of Nigeria is not in any way planning to give land to Fulani herdsmen anywhere in Nigeria, because by the provision of the Land Use Act, the President controls no land in the country, except in Abuja.”

    He assured the lingering East West road project would be completed before the end of the year to give way for kick off of the other phases of the project.

     

  • ‘No agreement to establish cattle colonies in Edo’

    ‘No agreement to establish cattle colonies in Edo’

    The Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, has declared as frivolous, comments by the Edo State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the strategic steps the Edo State government has taken in bringing the clashes between cattle herders and farmers to an end, in the state.

    Osagie cautioned the opposition party not to trivialise a sensitive subject matter that requires a great deal of expertise to comprehend, a requirement he said, the PDP lacks and urged the party to know where to draw the line of propaganda.

    “We want to state as we did before that there is no agreement to establish cattle colonies in Edo State. Our decision was based on expert finding after a scientific research on the herdsmen/farmers clashes in the state. The Obaseki administration subjects every issue to critical thinking, wide consultation and research.

    “But unlike us, we have noticed that the Edo PDP’s decisions and declarations are never thought through and are self-serving. As we expect, because of the learning challenges of members of the Edo PDP, it seems to be an uphill task for them to comprehend the position of the state government despite the repeated declaration that there is no agreement to establish cattle colonies in Edo State. “Or is the Edo PDP subtly pushing for the establishment of cattle colonies?” He asked.

    He maintained that “A study of this matter has shown that an overwhelming majority of the nefarious activities of herdsmen happen at night. We are taking our decision based on the findings of a scientific research and not some knee-jerk reactions that are characteristic of the Edo PDP.”

    He asked the chairman of Edo PDP, Dan Orbih, to honestly tell Edo people and Nigerians if the total ban on cattle movement in any part of the country, be it at night or day, has stopped herdsmen from rearing their cattle across the country.

    “In the states where cattle rearing have been banned from moving in the day and night, are there no herdsmen activities or cattle in those states?”

    The governor’s aide stressed that “to make declarations that are not realistic and sustainable for the sake of talking is not the style of this administration.”

    He explained that “the ban on night-grazing and armed herdsmen are steps in the right direction in addition to the setting up of two committees that will monitor the activities of herdsmen in all parts of the state.”

    Edo State Government on Thursday after a crucial meeting with representatives of the various Fulani communities in the state and security officials, announced a ban on night grazing and the carrying of guns and other dangerous weapons by herdsmen in the state.

    He also announced a seven-man committee in each of the 18 Local Government Areas in the state to check clashes between herdsmen and farmers.

    “The seven-man committee will include the chairmen or heads of the LGAs, the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs), representatives of State Security Service and four representatives from the communities in the state.

    At the stakeholders’ meeting with the Serikis Hausa/Fulani from the 18 LGAs in the state, Obaseki charged the committee to “review all cases of herdsmen/farmer clashes in all the local government areas.”

    He said the State Government would release the report of clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the state to the committees for review.

    He explained: “The committees will ensure the registration of all the Serikis Fulani in every community across all the local government areas and the Seriki Fulani will liaise with everyone rearing cattle in the area.”

    According to the governor, there will be another committee that will be headed by him and members of the committee will include the State Commissioner of Police, the Director of the State Security Service in the state, the Commander of 4 Brigade with other members drawn from the communities across the three senatorial districts in the state.

  • Cattle colonies

    Cattle colonies

    The controversy over plans to establish cattle colonies in the country continues to reverberate. In many states, the people are agitated over issues such as the name ‘colony’ and what it connotes, fears that it could lead to permanent settlement of Fulani herdsmen who would procreate so rapidly and overrun the original inhabitants. There are also suggestions that it is a ploy for cultural subjugation. Christians, in particular, following the wailing, blood and sorrow that have trailed the activities of the Fulani herders in many parts of the country, are apprehensive that Islam could be planning to reenact the clashes between the Fulani and Hausa that led to subjugation in most parts of the North, institutionalisation of the Islamic religion and establishment of Emirate stools.

    We commend the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, who is a renowned pastoralist and Idoma from Benue State. He has continued to explain the concept and benefits of the colonies. Given the latest explanation that the idea would not be forced on any state, we agree that it could be a noble idea. Chief Ogbeh has explained that each colony would require about 1,000 hectares of land, and accommodate about 30 to 40 ranches, or about 30,000 herd of cattle.

    We call on the Federal Government not to relent on allaying lingering fears on the concept which are understandable in view of recent clashes in various parts of the country, including Benue, Taraba, Enugu, Ondo, Cross River, Edo, Oyo, Kaduna, among others. It must be emphasised that, under the Land Use Act, land is vested in the federating units, not the Federal Government that can no longer be trusted because of the poor management of the herdsmen/farmers’ clashes. Chief Ogbeh has restated that the states would be partners in the project to be funded by the Federal Government.

    Ownership of land in the country is very sensitive and the cause of many a communal conflict. The issue should, therefore, be settled ab initio. Who would own the land after states might have agreed to the project? In what ways would the families and communities that originally own the land be accommodated? Would it be on purchase or lease; would the owners be compensated for the acquisition? The governments should learn from the agitation in the Niger Delta over resource control at this phase of the negotiations.

    It is apposite, too, that adequate infrastructure for the cattle is provided and the fees and taxes to be paid by the herdsmen settled. This is because the government cannot afford to bring the cattle without putting in place all that is needed for their comfort in terms of feeding, water and the needs of the workers. Anything short of this would derail the plan and the cattle could be found sooner than later roaming freely in search of fodder.

    We hope Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s committee would do a thorough job with a view to settling recent disputes, reconciling warring sides and assuring all that the Federal Government could be trusted with just intervention. This is the only thing that can reduce tension in the land.

    A number of models have been proposed on handling the colonies or ranches. States that feel uncomfortable with having colonies, or are unable to make available the large expanse of land required and would rather have ranches should be encouraged to do so. Perhaps, by the time the experiment in the 16 states that have volunteered to participate might have succeeded, others would be persuaded to join.

    Details of how meat would be transported round the country from the colonies to be established and other marketing details should be carefully worked out in the same way that cocoa and other cash crops were purchased and exported in the First Republic. The template could be studied and applied with regard to the planned colonies.

  • Fed Govt won’t force cattle colonies

    Fed Govt won’t force cattle colonies

    Troops are likely to be deployed in some herdsmen/farmers crises flashpoints in Benue, Taraba and other states, it was learnt at the weekend.

    The troops will have the mandate to flush out the rampaging bandits and mercenaries.

    The government may also allow each state to meet with its stakeholders to design own solutions to the herdsmen challenge as the Federal Government will not impose any solution, such as the controversial cattle colony, on states.

    These are some of the highlights of the Working Group raised two weeks ago by the National Economic Council (NEC).

    There are nine governors in the committee, which is chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

    A source said intelligence report on the likelihood of mercenaries behind the killings in some states might have accounted for the planned deployment of troops.

    The source said: “The Federal Government has drawn the battle line to end the impunity and killings in Benue, Taraba, Adamawa and other states.

    “At the end of the Working Group meeting last week, it was clear a major turning point had been reached in the management of the crisis and sufficient consensus recorded on the need to stop the impunity by engaging the military in a more decisive manner.

    “Decisive military force will now be fully engaged to deal with the bandits believed to be behind the killings in parts of the country, especially regarding the crisis often associated with herdsmen.”

    The military is already engaged and would soon begin to implement decisive military steps to tackle the situation.

    “Indeed one of the firm outcomes of the Working Group’s meeting was the expressed readiness of the federal Govt to locate and identify the bandits who perpetrate the killings and the violence, and using all necessary means, including military involvement, to flush them out of their hideouts in forests across the country as a definite move to secure the lives and property of Nigerian citizens.

    “The role of bandits and suspected mercenaries in what has become known as herdsmen/ farmers clashes and violence may have provoked the need for a fresh approach to dealing with the crisis.

    “The settled view in official circles is that the reported killings and violence recorded are the work of bandits and mercenaries since in many cases the herdsmen are often well-known in the communities where their cattle normally graze.”

    The crisis also required a political solution, considering the religious and ethnic tones that could easily worsen the situation.

    A source said: “This is the reason analysts argue, even with some critical opinions, on the composition of the Working Group, that the idea of gathering together governors across the country, including the states where the crisis has been intense to collaborate actively among themselves and with the Federal Government to address the situation is useful.”

    Another source said the Federal Government might strengthen law enforcement and intelligence agencies to tackle the matter.

    The source added: “The Working Group has also resolved to work with the Federal Government to strengthen law enforcement and all security and intelligence agencies in the country so that they can coordinate better in dealing with, checkmating, and preventing the crisis from further escalation.

    “The police and other security and military agencies have been asked to recruit more rank and file to tighten security in the troubled spots and in the country generally.”

    On how to permanently address the basis of the herdsmen and farmer clashes, the source added: “The Working Group has taken the view that every state should by a rigorous consultative process with all stakeholders design its own solutions.

    “The Federal Government will not impose any solution on any state. The Vice President assured all that the Federal Government would certainly not imposed its ideas on the states and noted that fears being expressed on cattle colonies are misplaced.”

  • How ready is Nigeria for Cattle colonies?

    How ready is Nigeria for Cattle colonies?

    In this report, Ephraims Sheyin  of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) writes that opinions are sharply divided on Federal Government’s policy to establish cattle colonies to end the lingering clashes between itinerant herders and farmers.

    SINCE it was announced three weeks ago by Agriculture Minister Audu Ogbeh, the planned establishment of cattle colonies by the Federal Government as panacea to the incessant herdsmen/farmers clashes, has continued to attract reactions and vast interests from many quarters.

    Unveiling the policy, the minister said that 16 states had indicated interest in the scheme and were prepared to volunteer parcels of land for cattle colonies in their domains.

    Feelers from across the states showed that the policy has become an issue for debate at public gatherings including, social joints, eateries and offices, with anxious Nigerians either condemning it, or bringing out its merits to drum up support for the policy.

    Many state governments as well as ethnic and regional associations have met over the policy and took positions.  No a few are still conferring to guide their decisions.

    Already, many states in the South have openly rejected the policy, while some governors in the North, who earlier endorsed the idea, have backed out.

    Kogi Governor Yahaya Bello, for instance, who was quoted as endorsing the policy, has been told by two of the three major ethnic groups in the state – the Igala and Yoruba – to steer clear of their territory in his search for the land to be used as cattle colony.

    The Kogi situation is similar to Plateau’s, one of the states listed by Ogbeh as ready to allocate land for the purpose. Some of Plateau’s leaders have openly rejected the idea and vowed to resist it.

    First to fire the salvo was Senator Jonah Jang, Governor Simon Lalong’s predecessor, who said that his Plateau Central constituents were opposed to the creation of cattle colonies and were not ready to relinquish their ancestral lands to be used for that purpose.

    Former Plateau State House of Assembly former Speaker Titus Alams has also registered his opposition to the policy, declaring that Plateau has no land to spare as its farmers do not even have enough.

    With more voices kicking against the policy, Lalong capitulated at the weekend and told Plateau residents, via a statement signed by his media aide, Dan Manjang, that no Plateau land would be carved out and donated to be used as a cattle colony.

    As the policy gets increasingly controversial, pundits appear lost over the difference between the colonies and ranches. Or even the grazing reserves the National Assembly rejected in 2008.

    Ogbeh explained: “Cattle colonies are better for the breeding of cows because 30 or 40 ranches can share the same colony. A ranch is usually owned by an individual or a company with generally few cows. In a colony, you could find 30,000 cows belonging to different owners.

    “The reason why we are designing the colony is that we want to prepare on a large scale, on economy of scale, a place where many owners of cattle can co-exist, and where cows can be fed well, because we can make their feeds. They can get good water to drink. Cows drink a lot of water. We can give them green fodder.’’

    From the minister’s explanation, colonies will be larger  and sit on lands acquired by the Federal Government, unlike ranches where cattle breeders will acquire land according to extant rules and subject their operations to the norms and cultures of their host communities.

    But for Dr. Sylvanus Atoh, a retired teacher and farmer, the idea of cattle colony has remained largely unpopular because it sounds “rather abstract’’.

    Atoh said: “The idea may be a good one, but many people still do not know what it means and therefore suspect that it may be a tool being used to achieve some sinister agenda.

    “The initiators have not clearly explained its modus operandi, thus giving an impression that  communities will be created or carved out of existing ones solely for herders, availing them access to lands that are not theirs.’’

    He urged the government to step up efforts to address fears by providing answers to some crucial posers.

    The teacher-turned farmer said: “There are many posers. If the land is acquired and the cattle colony is established, who owns that land? Who controls it? Does it belong to the Federal Government, traditional communities or families from whom it had been collected?

    “What of the economic trees in such lands? Do they belong to the original owners of the land or the herdsmen occupying the colonies?’’

    Atoh expressed the fear that the cattle colonies could turn out to be “states’’ within a state because they would be autonomous communities whose life style might not be the same with their host communities.

    The Chairman of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Emeka Anosike, expressed reservations about the potency of the cattle colonies as a panacea to the herdsmen/farmers clashes.

    He said: “The minister has said that a colony will host 40 ranches, which means that hundreds of herders will settle there. Such herders will increase in number and seek more land to occupy which could cause more clashes.

    “Again, the lands to be donated are arable lands belonging to people which perpetually denies them of their ancestral property. If each state donates 10,000 hectares of land as proposed, it will translate to 370,000 hectares of land mass given to a group for personal business.

    “Nigerian communities are agrarian in nature and need lands for their agricultural activities; taking away scarce arable lands will impede farming activities in rural communities.

    “The best step is to encourage individual cattle owners to acquire land for ranching which is the practise in other civilised climes.’’

    Some analysts argue that cattle colonies must first be preceded by a census of herdsmen and their cattle, so as to know what number to cater for.

    One of such analysts, Adamu Yusuf, a retired civil servant now a farmer based in Saminaka, Kaduna State, said: “As it is, we do not know the number of cattle in Nigeria. We do not know the number of herdsmen either. So, how can we effectively plan?’’

    He said that a census of herdsmen was important in view of recent observations that most of the herdsmen attacking rural farming communities were not Nigerians.

    Yusuf recalled that the Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, had in 2016, confirmed that herdsmen attacking rural communities in that state were not Nigerians.

    He quoted the governor as saying that he had established contact with the attackers who were based in some West African countries, and had begun discussions with them toward halting the attacks.

    “So, if we established such cattle colonies, what is the guarantee that they will be occupied by local herdsmen and not foreigners?”, he asked rhetorically.

    Accounts of attacks on Plateau rural communities, as relayed by their traditional rulers, appear to lend credence to Yusuf’s position.

    The monarchs, at a meeting organised by the Plateau Police Command and held in Jos recently, said that the attackers were very different from the herdsmen they had related with, over the years.

    Mr Patrick Mandong, the Gomre of Kuru and Rev. Ronku Akaa, the Braa Nggwe in Bassa, disclosed that the attackers were “strange people’’. They urged the government to strive to rid the nation of such invaders.

    The monarchs advised that effort to settle the herdsmen and their cattle must be preceded by a thorough screening so as to avoid accommodating foreign elements that were not interested in peace.

    But as government trudges on with the policy, Ogbeh has tried to assuage the fears by saying that communal land ownership would not be transferred to herdsmen wherever colonies are established.

    He explained: “There is no truth in the speculations that government is conspiring to grant supremacy over communal land to herdsmen. Government is not using herdsmen to colonise anyone because the project is being executed in partnership with the government of states that volunteered land for it.’’

    The minister said that the Federal Government would fund the project while those wishing to benefit from it will pay some fees.

    Ogbeh said that the government would soon hold a stakeholders’ meeting on the implementation of the new policy so as to listen to the complaints and address the fears.

    Dr. Ahmed Muhammad, former Executive Director, National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom, believed the colonies have their merits.

    He, however, suggested that ranching remains the best option for the cattle breeders because “it is more compact’’.

    He urged the government to sell the ranching idea to the herdsmen with conviction, saying that it would make it easier to draw a line between Nigerian and foreign herdsmen, who cannot be steadied in one place.

    Muhammed said: “The herdsmen also desire a better life and will buy into an initiative that promises them that; they should be enlightened to focus more on quality instead of the quantity of cows.

    “There is need to settle cows in one place, and attributed the opposition to the cattle colonies on the delay in establishing them when land was available.

    “The government should have established the colonies, grazing reserves or ranches long ago. It will be difficult now because the land is getting smaller.

    “Livestock has been neglected and more attention paid to crops. There are grazing reserves and cattle routes in every state; the respective governments know this because they were all gazetted. It is unfortunate that they have been sold or turned into settlements.’’

    Ironically, some leaders of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), the herdsmen’s umbrella body, do not believe on the need for cattle colonies.

    Alhaji Sadiq Gidado, its Chairman in Awka, Anambra State, told reporters that cattle colonies would not work “especially in the Southeast zone’’.

    “In the Southeast, the proposed cattle colonies cannot work; you cannot just take somebody’s land and give to another person to conduct his own business; it is not right,’’ he said at a press conference in Awka.

    According him, the Anambra government has devised a way of avoiding herdsmen/farmers clashes by working in synergy with security operatives, farmers and herdsmen through the Cattle Menace Control Committee.

    Gidado, who dismissed cattle colonies and ranches as “political creations’’ by politicians to bring disharmony between farmers and herdsmen, blamed the frictions on migrant cattle breeders, who were not members of MACBAN, saying that the body had fashioned out some measures to forestall future incidents.

    He said: “The regulation is that you only graze where there are no farms; if you destroy farmlands intentionally or unintentionally, you must be punished for what you have done, and be made to pay for what you have destroyed.’’

    As the debate rages on, many observers have seen merit in Gidado’s position that what was required is a workable solution that will protect the interests of all sides.

    Observers urged the government to consult widely  to arrive at a lasting solution that will address mutual fears and restore the age-old cordial  relationship between the farmer and herdsman.

  • Lalong denies carving out land mass for cattle colonies

    Lalong denies carving out land mass for cattle colonies

    The Plateau State Government will not be a party to the proposed cattle colonies, Governor Simon Lalong declared yesterday.

    The governor described as “false, malicious and highly mischievous” reports in the social media that he had carved out parts of Riyom, Barkin Ladi and Bokkos local government areas for the creation of cattle colonies.

    The governor’s Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Dan Manjang, who broke the news of the government’s decision, advised all peace-loving citizens of Plateau State to “discountenance such mischievous information” and embrace issues that unite rather than divide them.

    Manjang, in a statement in Jos, said: “The attention of the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong, has been drawn to the news making the rounds, particularly in the social media, that parts of Riyom, Barkin Ladi and Bokkos LGAs have been carved out for the creation of colonies for cattle, in fulfilment of his promises to the Fulani who have pressured him to either cede those areas or face their vicious side, which may cost him his aspirations.

    “The governor herein states unequivocally that this thinking is not only a figment of the imagination of its authors who want to make political capital out of it, it is false, malicious and highly mischievous.

    “Governor Simon Bako Lalong does not contemplate such action, and he further calls on all good citizens of Plateau to bury such imagination of these elements (who are) bent on throwing the state into confusion. Cattle colonies are not in the imagination of Governor Lalong.

  • Cattle colonies not practicable in South-East –Miyetti Allah

    THE Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) said yesterday there was no need to set up cattle colonies in the Southeast geopolitical zone. The Chairman of MACBAN in Anambra State, Alhaji Sadiq Gidado,told reporters in Awka,the state capital that the establishment of cattle colonies in the area was not necessary because of the harmonious relationship existing between members of the association and the residents.

    He, however, underscored the need to strengthen the mutual understanding and synergy between MACBAN and the people in the zone. Gidado bemoaned the incessant farmer-herdsman clashes in some parts of the country, saying that the two parties were coexisting peacefully in the South East zone. He said:“Cattle breeding in Anambra is different from what obtains in other states; here in Anambra; we are working in synergy with the security operatives, the indigenes and the state government through the Cattle Menace Control Committee.

    “To me, anti-open grazing bill, cattle colonies and ranches are just political creations; these concepts are created by politicians to bring disharmony between farmers and herdsmen. “In the Southeast, the proposed cattle colonies cannot work; you cannot just take somebody’s land and give to another person to conduct his own business; it is not right. “Here in the zone, it is virtually impossible to operate cattle colonies, as there is harmonious relationship existing between the herdsmen and the farmers.

    “The cattle colonies they are talking about are already existing in the North.” Gidado, who is a member of the Cattle Menace Control Committee, commended the governors of the Southeast states for being proactive by setting up the committee which had ensured peace. He blamed some frictions recorded in the region on migrant cattle breeders, who were not members of MACBAN in the zone, saying that the association had put in place some measures to forestall future incidents. “We thank the governors of the South-East states, especially the Anambra and Enugu state governors, who constituted these committees that are coordinating our activities. “The regulation is that you only graze where there are no farms. If you destroy farmlands intentionally or unintentionally, you must be punished for what you have done and be made to pay for what you have destroyed.