The apex Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, has leaned its weight behind Nigeria’s Upper Legislative Chamber, for allowing the bill for an Act to ban open grazing and establish ranches, scale second reading.
Earlier this week, the bill scaled second reading after a heated argument among members of the Senate.
The bill was proposed by Senator Titus Zam representing Benue North-West, as an antidote for the perennial violent clashes between sedentary farmers and nomadic herders.
Speaking to newsmen on the development, the acting national youth leader of Ohaneze Ndigbo, Mazi Chukwuma Okpalaezeukwu commended the Senate for ensuring that the Bill scales through second reading, describing the argument that ensued at the floor of the Senate, as characteristic of a democracy, where people have the opportunity to air their opinion.
Describing farmers/herders clashes as a recurring crisis that has taken so many lives, destroyed properties, and affected the Nigerian economy, Okpalaezeukwu said as of today, ranches must be established to control and manage the incessant and unnecessary farmers/ herders crisis.
According to him, the only way to manage the farmers/herders crisis is by the progressive establishment of ranches.
“Open grazing is costing us lives and property, food security, and destroying the economy.
“Open grazing in Nigeria at this time is counter-productive.
“The basic responsibility of government is to protect lives and property and open grazing negates this purpose.
“I am in touch with a leader of the Miyetti Allah in the Southeast, a genuine man who is doing business, and he has told me that these killer herdsmen are not part of them and that they are even endangering the genuine herders.
“It means that if we establish ranches, it will be easy for security agencies to protect herders who do that for genuine economic purposes because their cows will be in a well-secured environment, while it will be easier to identify the criminals in the forests and flush them out.
“If we establish ranches, our farmers will no longer suffer, their crops will produce more and we will be secured, for national unity and peace,” he said.
Okpalaezeukwu, while noting that rearing of cows is not an ethnic phenomenon, however, said it has become a matter of national security and not something to be sentimental about.
In his words; “There are many countries that produce more cows and do other dairy businesses than Nigeria but they do not encounter this crisis, just because they don’t do open grazing.
“If we continue to do open grazing the way Nigeria is as of today, we will continue to have crisis and loss of lives.
“This is because there is no way that cows will not eat crops naturally and there is no way a farmer whose crops have been destroyed will be calm and there is no way a farmer will hurt a cow and the herder will not react.
“The continuous co-existence of crops and animals in the same environment is counter-productive.
“The essence of ranches is to seclude the animals within a given area so that they are not able to affect the crops negatively.
“So, it is important that we consider ranching as a viable option at this time.”
