The leaders of the Miyetti Allah
Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) say they have not changed their
position on the anti-grazing law passed by the Benue state government.
The law, which was passed in May
2017 and it took effect in November same year, has generated a lot of
controversy, with Miyetti Allah describing it as a time bomb.
In April, Samuel Ortom, the state
governor, had said the association had finally accepted to adopt cattle
ranching as a solution to the clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the
state.
“I think that, in Benue, we are
winning because Miyetti Allah and MACABAN have accepted that ranching remains
the best option to rear cattle,” Ortom had said.
But in a statement by Abdullahi
Bodejor, national president of Miyetti Allah, Saleh Alhassan, its secretary;
and Garus Gololo, chairman communiqué drafting committee, the group insisted
the law is a violation of its fundamental human rights.
The leaders of the group reached
this position on Friday after it rose from an emergency meeting in Kaduna
state.
They urged urged President
Muhammadu Buhari to call Ortom to order, adding that “his actions are a
fundamental threat to peaceful coexistence and food security in Nigeria.”
“We condemn the call by some
desperate and jobless groups parading the streets of Abuja looking for crumbs
from corrupt politicians agitating for the profiling and stigmatisation of
Fulani pastoralist in Nigeria,” the statement read.
“We urge the attorney-general to
ignore their letter as they are hired agents by a sinking governor.
“We totally reject the repressive
and oppressive ‘Anti-open Grazing Law’ as it is fundamentally going against our
culture, economic interest and constitutional rights and will deploy all the
necessary legal means as enshrined in our constitution to challenge it.”
The group commended the action of
its sister organisation which filed a suit to challenge the anti-grazing law.
It also argued that it had the
right to move freely in any part of the country.
“Consequently, we affirm our
support and solidarity for the legal action taken by the Miyetti Allah Kautal
Hore Fulani Socio- cultural Association to challenge the negative Benue anti-
grazing law at the federal high court, Abuja,” the statement read.
“That pastoralists, like all
citizens of Nigeria, have the right to move freely and to reside in any part of
the country. They also have a right to own property in any part of the country
and enjoy the right of freedom from discrimination like any other citizen of
the country.
“We call on the national assembly
to live up to their responsibility because the inter-state movement of
pastoralists is analogous to inter-state commerce, which is an exclusive
preserve of the legislative powers of the National Assembly under item 62 of
the Exclusive Legislative List. To this effect, any action taken by a state
Assembly is in conflict with above section of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
“We are calling on the minister
of justice, inspector-general of police (IGP), the senate president, speaker of
the house of representatives and our royal fathers to call the Benue state
governor to order, as his actions and continuous threat to the leadership of
the Fulani pastoralists is a serious threat to peaceful coexistence.
“We appreciates the efforts being
put in place by the federal and state governments in addressing the security
challenges facing the Fulani pastoralists, particularly cattle rustling,
kidnapping and banditry.”
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A State assembly pass a law and an organization is saying they will not obey that law, is that not call for anarchy ?
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