They can’t put an end to open grazing Miyetti Allah tell South-West Governors

A factional umbrella body for herdsmen, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, has disagreed with the southwest governors on the notion of putting an end to open grazing in the region.

This is however against the position of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), which at a meeting with some governors in Akure, the Ondo State capital, on January 25, had agreed with the position of the governors.

The meeting in Akure was attended by the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Governors Adegboyega Oyetola of Osun State, Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa State, Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, and Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State. MACBAN was led to the meeting by its chairman, Alhaji Muhammadu Kiruwa, among other attendees.

But speaking in an interview with The Punch on Saturday, the Secretary-General of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Saleh Alhassan, said the enforcement of the ban was tantamount to an eviction notice.

He said, “They can’t put an end to open grazing by fiat because grazing is not motorcycle business; there must be an alternative. Secondly, if they say they are going to end open grazing, what is the timeline for it?

“They want to displace herders from where they earn their livelihood. It is not different from an eviction notice – it is just putting the eviction notice into effect. This is very unfortunate because they cannot come out to say they are embracing peaceful herders and then say they are ending open grazing. What do they mean by that? Is there closed grazing?

“From history, right from the time of Moses, grazing is open. By now, they should realize that they will not get the result they are looking for. We are in total support of the National Livestock Transformation Plan. I was part of the committee that reviewed the final document. The program has a lot of components, and if implemented, it will address a lot of challenges.

“Look at Benue State and how the approach has created a militia. You can’t end open grazing by fiat as if someone is looking for a crisis, and these crises have a way of reverberating.”