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Last week, there were reports that some Fulani herdsmen
raided Agatu, an agrarian community in Benue State, and left in their
wake, gruesome murder of about 50 members of that community.
The herdsmen were to explain later that they carried out the attack to retaliate the killing of about 1,000 of their cattle by the Agatu people. This latest conflict is only one too many. In the past five years or so, the herdsmen and the farmers have been embroiled in perennial conflicts like this, resulting in each case, the loss of countless lives and properties worth billions of naira,Reports National Mirror.
From Benue State to Enugu State, to Delta State, to Kaduna State up to Kwara State, it has been tales of nomadic cattle herdsmen taking up battle with farm owners. These recurrent conflicts no doubt, pose serious national security concerns. It was in a bid to find a lasting solution to this problem that the senate last week devoted some good measure of time to interrogate this national security challenge.
All the senators who contributed to the motion by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (Enugu North) on, “Tackling the Perennial Conflicts between Farmers and Cattle Herdsmen,” spoke in one accord to express worry that the conflicts if not promptly addressed may escalate beyond the Boko Haram level. The lawmakers were worried that the level of sophistication of the conflicts point to the direction that some highly placed Nigerians may be behind the crisis.
The legislators were equally concerned that those who parade as Fulani herdsmen that perpetrate the heinous acts of mindless murder are mercenaries from some of Nigeria’s neighbouring countries, who are drafted to undertake the killings. For instance, the lawmakers spoke about tales of the herdsmen being heavily armed with modern firearms, concealed among the grazing cattle. The lawmakers also worry of increasing cases of armed robbery, human savagery, rampant rape, maiming and kidnapping of the victims of the herdsmen who are mostly land and settled farm owners who try to stop the devastations of their farms.
For the legislators, nomadic cattle grazing is an economic activity and the owners of the cattle and the rearers should not deposit the economic interests of other farmers as they pursue theirs as this may take political and ethnic colouration with the attendant crisis that may follow. It will be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had in July 2015 directed the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to initiate strategies for ending the incessant farmers and herdsmen clashes across the country, and the Federal Government is said to be considering creating grazing routes for the movement of the cattle.
The lawmakers while considering this proposal criticized it because it would result, on the one hand for the nomads, in accepting nomadic life as norm and the implication would be denial of the benefits of settled human civilization, including the right to own homes and land, and the right to have their wards properly educated. For them also, creating routes for grazing would encourage the violation of the rights of settled land owners and farmers whose crops and communities bear the adverse brunt of nomadic cattle grazing and expose citizens living along the routes to health dangers as cattle tend to be repositories and carriers if certain diseases harmful to human population.
It was the general view of the lawmakers that settled cattle farming instead would be a better approach to addressing the issues associated with the rather outdated nomadic cattle rearing system of agriculture as it would confer dignity of labour to the rearers, allow them to own decent accommodation, make the animals healthier for human consumption and create a settled system of schooling for the wards of the owners and rearers of these cattle.
This was even as the legislators said they are persuaded to believe that adopting the settled system of cattle grazing will encourage the emergence of the ancillary industries within and around the communities where cattle reserve, large farms and ranches are located as is obtained in all countries that have adopted modern modes of agricultural production.
After a very extensive debate of the motion, the lawmakers resolved to condemn the criminal activities of some elements among cattle herdsmen who use the cover of their trade to perpetrate harrowing despoliation of people’s farms and engage in the other sundry criminal activities.
They urged cattle owners to ensure that the grazing of their cattle does not infringe on the rights of farming communities and other farmers who engage in settled agricultural production. Finally, the lawmakers urged the Federal Government to urgently establish ranches and grazing reserves across the country, and adopt other strategies to enable nomadic cattle handlers settle to modern system of livestock keeping.
The herdsmen were to explain later that they carried out the attack to retaliate the killing of about 1,000 of their cattle by the Agatu people. This latest conflict is only one too many. In the past five years or so, the herdsmen and the farmers have been embroiled in perennial conflicts like this, resulting in each case, the loss of countless lives and properties worth billions of naira,Reports National Mirror.
From Benue State to Enugu State, to Delta State, to Kaduna State up to Kwara State, it has been tales of nomadic cattle herdsmen taking up battle with farm owners. These recurrent conflicts no doubt, pose serious national security concerns. It was in a bid to find a lasting solution to this problem that the senate last week devoted some good measure of time to interrogate this national security challenge.
All the senators who contributed to the motion by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (Enugu North) on, “Tackling the Perennial Conflicts between Farmers and Cattle Herdsmen,” spoke in one accord to express worry that the conflicts if not promptly addressed may escalate beyond the Boko Haram level. The lawmakers were worried that the level of sophistication of the conflicts point to the direction that some highly placed Nigerians may be behind the crisis.
The legislators were equally concerned that those who parade as Fulani herdsmen that perpetrate the heinous acts of mindless murder are mercenaries from some of Nigeria’s neighbouring countries, who are drafted to undertake the killings. For instance, the lawmakers spoke about tales of the herdsmen being heavily armed with modern firearms, concealed among the grazing cattle. The lawmakers also worry of increasing cases of armed robbery, human savagery, rampant rape, maiming and kidnapping of the victims of the herdsmen who are mostly land and settled farm owners who try to stop the devastations of their farms.
For the legislators, nomadic cattle grazing is an economic activity and the owners of the cattle and the rearers should not deposit the economic interests of other farmers as they pursue theirs as this may take political and ethnic colouration with the attendant crisis that may follow. It will be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had in July 2015 directed the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to initiate strategies for ending the incessant farmers and herdsmen clashes across the country, and the Federal Government is said to be considering creating grazing routes for the movement of the cattle.
The lawmakers while considering this proposal criticized it because it would result, on the one hand for the nomads, in accepting nomadic life as norm and the implication would be denial of the benefits of settled human civilization, including the right to own homes and land, and the right to have their wards properly educated. For them also, creating routes for grazing would encourage the violation of the rights of settled land owners and farmers whose crops and communities bear the adverse brunt of nomadic cattle grazing and expose citizens living along the routes to health dangers as cattle tend to be repositories and carriers if certain diseases harmful to human population.
It was the general view of the lawmakers that settled cattle farming instead would be a better approach to addressing the issues associated with the rather outdated nomadic cattle rearing system of agriculture as it would confer dignity of labour to the rearers, allow them to own decent accommodation, make the animals healthier for human consumption and create a settled system of schooling for the wards of the owners and rearers of these cattle.
This was even as the legislators said they are persuaded to believe that adopting the settled system of cattle grazing will encourage the emergence of the ancillary industries within and around the communities where cattle reserve, large farms and ranches are located as is obtained in all countries that have adopted modern modes of agricultural production.
After a very extensive debate of the motion, the lawmakers resolved to condemn the criminal activities of some elements among cattle herdsmen who use the cover of their trade to perpetrate harrowing despoliation of people’s farms and engage in the other sundry criminal activities.
They urged cattle owners to ensure that the grazing of their cattle does not infringe on the rights of farming communities and other farmers who engage in settled agricultural production. Finally, the lawmakers urged the Federal Government to urgently establish ranches and grazing reserves across the country, and adopt other strategies to enable nomadic cattle handlers settle to modern system of livestock keeping.
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