26 September, 2017

Herdsmen From Hell


 
    The treatment of the Fulani herdsmen with kid gloves should end henceforth. These Fulani guys have      their abode in the Northern part of the country but prefer to migrate down South with their herds of cattle in search of greener pastures. This would have been all well and go good if not for the fact that these herders are wont to clash with their hosts without any provocation whatsoever. Their hosts, especially the farmers, are the Fulanis frequent victims. The host is expected to keep mum when the Fulani cattle eat the farmers’ crops. If the farmers dare to complain they are promptly killed and the females raped or maimed. I think if the host is not the aggressor the guest should definitely not be.
  That the Federal Government is weighing in on the issue on the side of the Fulanis is rather unfortunate.  The F.G is proposing a National Grazing Reserve Council which would have the power to take away land from wherever, anytime they want and pay whatever they want as   compensation to the land owner.  The land when taken shall be assigned to the Fulani herdsmen who shall use the land for grazing purposes. If, as a landowner you object to this, you can go to the court but not before notifying and getting the consent of the AGF before you can sue. If the AGF declines consent to the suit you lose your land forever to the herdsmen. The Chairman of the National Grazing Reserve Council will be appointed by the President. 
  From the foregoing it can be seen that the aces are stacked against the land owners. The F.G is proposing the appropriation of lands from the Southerners but this time using the instrumentality of the law. This must and can not stand. Even though the proposed Bill has passed the first reading at the National Assembly it will be impracticable even if passed into law.
    Cow herding is just one of the different professions we have in Nigeria. We have the fishermen, the spare parts sellers, the farmers, the cloth weavers, etc, etc. why then is the issue of the Fulani herdsmen so important to the government as to deserve presenting a Bill on the issue. They are individuals doing their individual businesses to survive-just like the next guy.  The money they make is to their pockets so why the hue and cry?
   Countries that are known for exporting meat e.g. Australia, Argentina, and U.S etc. don’t move their cattle from one place to the other. They don’t take their cattle to the food but rather the food to the cattle. Water, hay, fodder, etc, are taken to the cattle in the pens and pastures. Science and technology has overtaken the need for cattle pastoralism. The F.G should introduce global best practice in cattle management to these Fulani herdsmen and spare us the constant headaches the activities of these herdsmen cause the nation. The government should tread cautiously on this issue so as not to create a monster they can’t control. A word is enough for the wise.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I think the issue of the herdsmen clashes with the farmers has been on the spotlight for a while now even before the emergence of this present administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. I think we should be objective in our judgements irrespective pains, tribal affiliation and religious acclimatisation. Herdsmen criminality in Nigerian began shortly after the overthrown of the then Libya dictator, Coll Gaddafi from power, which as a result created a lots of armed gang along the sahel regions.it is arguable although that these criminal elements otherwise refers to as Fulani herdsmen can not be said to be Nigerians. I think efforts should be made to curtail the influx of these criminals from crossing our various porous borders expecially in the north east area of Nigeria. Our security agencies should be more active and awaken in their constitutional responsibilities to securing life and properties of every Nigerian irrespective of where they come from and the language they speaks. I remembered vividly our grandparents have leaved peaceful with the fulanis without any ranchor or ill-feelings. The only solution to these menaces is for other state Governors in the affected areas to follow the part of Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state by enacting a restricting herdsmen to certain areas of their states. In doing so, the activities of criminal disguising as herdsmen will thus be checked.