More killings of villagers by herdsmen have been reported since my last piece on the subject; which means that this is one problem we can’t wish away. The image of the Fulani herdsman with a long stick hung across his shoulders has now been replaced by that of a mean, AK-47-wielding pastoral militant baying for blood.
The problem cuts across all the six zones of Nigeria and I dare say that both Christians and Muslims alike have numbered among their victims. In Umunneochi, Bende and Ohafia in Abia State, there have been reports of destruction of farm crops and raping of their women. In Aruke and Ogboropre farmlands on the bank of the River Forcados, encroachment into farmlands by cattle herders has been reported and many of the communities in those areas have now barred the herdsmen from accessing their communities.
In Wanikade and Wanihem, Cross River State, over seventeen people received gunshot wounds and machete cuts following disagreement over whether to allow herdsmen settle and graze their cattle along their common borders.
Two years ago, Ntan Obu in Odukpani Local Government Area was reportedly attacked by Fulani herdsmen in collaboration with villagers from Ikpanya who had leased the land to them. In that instance, the arrival of the herdsmen complicated an inter-communal land struggle.
In Ondo State, the state government announced an outright ban on night grazing, movement of cattle in the night and rearing of cattle within Akure and its communities. Several clashes had been reported in the past in many Akoko communities. Owo, Ifon, Ogbese and Ilado have also had their taste of herdsmen’s violence.
In many parts of the North also, there is constant friction between the herdsmen and the farmers. Herdsmen will always seek greener pastures while farmers will always protect their crops from rampaging cattle. I remember witnessing one of such clashes many years ago on Mambilla Plateau. The recent case of the murder of over 300 people in Agatu villages has brought the issue into sharper relief, more so as the mayhem has continued.
Plateau, Nassarawa, Benue, Adamawa, Kwara, Niger states have at one time or the other had to contend with this problem. I dare say that no state is free of the problem.
Some attempts have been made in the past to stem the problem but none on national scale. For example, Enugu State drew up a bill entitled “A law to make provisions for the control of nomadic cattle rearing in Enugu State and other matters related thereto” in 2014 which sought to map out grazing reserves for cattle rearers in all the 17 local government areas of the state. The bill was eventually killed.
The Enugu example is the kind of intervention that many Nigerians have been hoping to see since the recent spiraling of the problem. Silence or kid glove treatment fuels suspicion and conspiracy theories which many Nigerians revel in. By now, somebody ought to have been directed to present a revised version of the Enugu bill for consideration by the National Council of States so that we can proffer a collective solution as one people, not as 36 scattered states. We could also dust up the proposals for the establishment of nationwide grazing reserves drawn up under Akinwumi Adesina’s tenure as agriculture minister.
It is about time something is urgently done on the national level. The authorities must now rise to the occasion. There has been no shortage of ideas by the public. I publish below the thoughts of one of such concerned Nigerians, Dr. Victor Oladokun.
7 THINGS PMB MUST DO NOW
I have been warned that I will be labeled an ‘enemy’ for stating the address the issue of herdsmen killing innocent villagers but I love my country more than I fear blackmailers. In my humble opinion wisdom, tact, and common sense dictate that President Muhammadu Buhari do the following:
Address the nation directly on TV and radio.
Commiserate with affected communities deliver a message of peace and hope.
Promise the rapid delivery of compensation and restitution to the survivors, the wounded, and the families of those who have lost loved ones and livelihoods.
·Go on BBC and other relevant radio services that Fulanis have a tendency to listen to. Speak to them in their own language, and in no uncertain terms state that this nonsense must come to an end quickly.
Set up and empower a Rapid Task Force with a view to stopping future violence and preventing a national conflict that might be much more difficult to contain.
Personally visit the affected communities to see things for yourself.
Meet with the leadership of Myetti Allah, the umbrella association of Fulani cattle herders, and explain in vivid detail what the consequences of future conflicts could be. As a start, all herdsmen must be disarmed immediately, otherwise we are only postponing the evil day.
Mr President, you owe it to Nigerians, to the many Fulani herdsmen of no determinate nationality who rampage and roam Nigeria, and to future generations, to be seen at this time to be on top of the unfortunate situation; to the plight of affected communities in word and deed; and to the security implications of these most barbaric and medieval acts.
Mr. President, If you have not been told already by the fawning advisors who tend to obsequiously kowtow to Presidents and only tell them what they want to hear, let me reveal that today, in the seeming absence of security and the denial by government officials of the massacres, Nigerians in large numbers are talking about the necessity of arming themselves by all means possible. They are beginning to realise that dead men and women do not write history.
Mr. President Sir, for your good, and the good of Nigerians, I respectfully ask you to act and speak now, before it is too late!
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