by Tola Adeniyi

The National Assembly is about to pass a Bill that is set to kill whatever is left of our so-called over-centralised federal System. The Bill if passed will be the greatest rape on our democracy and the biggest insult on our collective sensitivity as a people and as a country.

“The Fulani National Grazing Reserve”, is presently before the National Assembly. The bill has successfully scaled through second reading in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. For it to become law it is to pass through the third reading.

“The bill seeks to provide for the establishment of national grazing reserves and stock routes. It is sponsored by Senator Zainab Kure.

“The Bill proposes to establish a National Grazing Reserve Commission (NGRC) for the country. The NGRC will be charged with the responsibility of using funds received from the Federal Government to forcefully acquire farmlands from Nigerians in all the 36 States of the country, develop same at government expense through the provision of bore holes, water reservoirs, etc; for the exclusive use of nomadic cattle rearers.”

The issue here is very clear. Fulani Herdsmen are cattle farmers. They could as well keep their cattle in ranches. They could devise whatever means like their counterparts in Argentina, Australia and the rest of the civilized world to do their animal husbandry. The men and boys roaming the streets, roads and bushes driving cattle are not the owners of these animals. They are just employees, labourers, attendants or whatever name they are called.

The owners of these cows like Generals Obasanjo, Nyako, Abdulsalami Abubakar and our president Buhari are big time farmers. They are businessmen. It is immoral to ask tax payers to finance the operations of these businesses. Cattle owners must provide capital through bank loans or whatever means to create their grazing lands in their localities. The cows are not owned by the Federal Government.

Just as the Federal Government is not creating farm lands for cocoa and kolanut farmers in Sokoto or Katsina, or creating farm lands for Agatu yam farmers in Enugu or Maiduguri, or creating special areas for fish farming in Zungeru, it cannot for any reason ever consider creating special lands for herdsmen for grazing. Let the herdsmen run their business without encroaching on the lands of other people. Let the cattle owners buy into the Fodder technology and other modern methods of providing feeds for their animals without roaming the streets and plundering other people’s farms.

To ever dream of this perverted Bill is to step on the toes of other Nigerians and step on sore foot, and by so doing create a dangerous precedent.

Nobody should play ethnic game here. This is not an issue directed against any ethnic nationality in Nigeria. The simple matter is to let those who trade in cattle fund their business like all other businesses, including farming, in Nigeria.

The Bill must not see the light of the day. The sponsors want to create serious problem in the polity and their design must be nipped in the bud.

The Nigeria Bar Association, the Coalition of Civil Societies, and all those who care about the continued existence of this troubled country must rise up to strongly oppose and kill this obnoxious and self serving Bill. It beats my imagination that members of the National Assembly did not see the serious danger posed by this corrosive Bill.

In a reaction to the threats posed by this obnoxious Bill, the National co-ordinator of the Oodua Peoples congress Otunba Gani Adams says, “Without any doubt, this is a very dangerous proposal for Nigeria. We all have seen how the Fulani herdsmen kill and maim members of the community where they graze their cattle without the backing of any law. I am sure that we can only imagine what their attitudes would be if the supposed grazing reserves are forcefully taken over by government and handed over to the herdsmen.”

Nigeria has enough problems on her hand right now; we should not provoke new and potentially more dangerous ones.

- Chief Tola Adeniyi

you mean it mirrors the petroleum land act thingy?

Or what's the bill about?

tpia5:
you mean it mirrors the petroleum land act thingy?
Or what's the bill about?

Read up bro. It's written in plain English

imo what the govt can do is plant grass in specific areas which are not in regions of dispute, to make for good relations between grazers and the host community.

The cattle feed on grass and what else? There's some other imported stuff which constitutes cattle fodder besides grass, this will necessitate having ranches or some sort where the cattle will be fed, watered and housed.

The process of choosing grazing sites should be an open one and agreeable to all parties involved.

Diplomacy and mediation skills are necessary.

oluphilip2008:



Read up bro. It's written in plain English

humour me.

tpia5:
imo what the govt can do is plant grass in specific areas which are not in areas of dispute, to make for good relations between grazers and the host community.

The cattle feed on grass and what else? There's some other imported stuff which constitutes cattle fodder besides grass, this will necessitate having ranches or some sort where the cattle will be fed, watered and housed.

The process of choosing grazing sites should be an open one and agreeable to all parties involved.

Diplomacy and mediation skills are necessary.

Any fulani man who wants grazing land should raise money and buy lands same way other business man acquire properties across the country!! There will be nothing like free land anywhere in igboland!! Let me see how Buhari would take our igbo lands and give to his people in the name of grazing reserves!! Dem no born am well!!

Trouble dey sleep ...

The bill is corrosive. We will make sure they cry like buhari. Fulani your steps are been monitored. Come down with your cattle but u won't go back with single one. We will not fight you but your cattles will die mysteriously.

Jihad Jihad Jihad

This is their plan to appear the most populated in order to hold power forever

We rebuke this in Jesus name Amen

Seconded

We don't even have lands not to talk of giving out lands free

Sadly, the murder of farmers in the name of cattle herders has made herders -innocent or not- a security risk for all communities throughout the nation. In a reasonable society, this practice should be halted until reasonable security is established. It is bizarre that the government should contemplate creating grazing land for these people all over Nigeria when it cannot guarantee safety of communities from herders or indeed herders from communities.

Actually, one of the things that these spate of farmers herders tells us is that modernity has irrevocably signaled the end of the nomadic way of life in Nigeria. The government should be thinking of forcing these people to settle down and ranch not feeding them false hope that their way of life in terms of cattle driving can continue. It obviously cannot because communities all over Nigeria don't want them nearby. The consequences of this rejection nationwide means Reservations will be untenable resulting in no peace. Reservations will only seem like bridgeheads for conflicts and conquests.