By Ochereome Nnanna
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Federal
Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari appears hell-bent on imposing the
establishment of grazing reserves across Nigeria in spite of the many unpalatable implications it
will unleash on unsuspecting Nigerians. On Thursday, 31 March 2016, I wrote an
article on this column entitled: “Ranching, Yes; Grazing Reserves, No!” The
article called attention to what was then speculated as intentions of the
Federal Government to launch this obnoxious policy aimed at handing over lands
belonging to indigenous communities to Fulani cattle owners in the guise of
establishing “grazing reserves”.
Now, the masquerade
has been unmasked: the Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Audu Ogbeh, has disclosed
that President Buhari has directed him to implement the programme. According to
him, he will start it from the North, where he will establish 50,000
hectares of
grazing reserves. Then, he will import his beloved Brazil grass to feed the cattle. When he is
done with that, he will, in his own words: “move South”. With the Fulani
herdsmen now settled in their newly-acquired grazing lands, perhaps without
paying a kobo or even negotiating with landowners and obtaining their express
permission to use their land, the herdsmen will stop invading communities,
destroying the farms of poor villagers, killing, maiming, kidnapping, raping
and dehumanising innocent Nigerians.
I read an interesting article by one Dr. Gundu of the Department of Archaeology, Ahmadu Bello University , Zaria . He gave a useful insight into the grazing reserves phenomenon, which should jolt our complacently ignorant countrymen, especially those from the Southern parts of the country. Gundu’s article is entitled: History Class On Grazing Reserves: Why Fulani Herdsmen Want Your Land.
It traces the historical experiments
in the North to impose this policy and an outcome of it in some parts which you
will not want repeated in your local community. According to Gundu: “Grazing
reserves and stock routes are known to dominate Fulani demands on the country
and all leading presidential candidates in previous elections in the country
since 1999 have committed themselves in writing to the Fulani on the issue of
grazing reserves”.
Gundu also observes
that the idea dates back to colonial times. The British colonial masters, who
handed over power to the Fulani (the overlords of the North) had toyed with the
idea of granting them this wish but did not have enough time to do so. So, when
the Sardauna of Sokoto, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, became the Premier of the Northern
Region, he established the first grazing reserves and “”stock routes” in
Sokoto, Katsina, Zaria and Bauchi Provinces in 1965.
An angle of it will interest (and warn) you.
Today’s Southern Kaduna was part of Zaria Province , so Ahmadu Bello sited a
grazing reserve in Kachia (a Christian part of old Zaria Province which the Usman Dan Fodio Jihadists
were unable to Islamise). He settled his ethnic Fulani herdsmen there. They
became known as Kachechari (or Fulani’s of Kachia). Though the indigenes still
regard them as “visitors,” these Fulani’s who have been settled in this
territory for 50 years now demand a chiefdom, which will officially confirm
their ownership of the land that belongs to Kachia people.
Till date, it is a source of tension between
the two sides, and the “herdsmen” have been armed to assert their “ownership
rights”.
President Buhari is, by
posture and disposition, first of all a Fulani/Muslim before any other thing.
He essentially models himself as the modern-day Ahmadu Bello, a prince of the
Sokoto Caliphate (though Buhari is no prince). Gundu notes that when General
Sani Abacha was the Head of State and Buhari was his highly privileged cohort
and the Executive Chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), he put pressure
on Abacha to revive Ahmadu Bello’s grazing reserves scheme. This, however,
could not take off before Abacha died. It is also on record that President
Buhari, a well-known cattle business owner, was (and maybe still is) the Grand
Patron of the association of Fulani cattle owners and herdsmen, the Minyeti
Allah.
*Audu Ogbeh |
In fact, he once led a
delegation of his members to former Governor Lam Adesina of Oyo State when clashes between Fulanis and
indigenes in Oyo state allegedly led to loss of some Fulani lives. He is quoted
to have asked Governor Adesina: “Why are
your people killing my people?” So, it should not come to anyone as a
surprise that, as President of Nigeria, Buhari will be pushing this policy in
this day and age when nomadic pastoralism has gone out of fashion except in
backward climes in Africa and Asia where
some elements among the Mongols, Fulanis and Masais are still tightly clinging
to their ancient cultural lifestyle. It is also not surprising that some state
governors in the North, like Kano and Plateau, have already offered to
participate in the grazing reserves project. Kano ,
in fact, boasts that it was the one that revived the idea. If Kano and other Northern states where Fulani
herdsmen have ancestral homes and legitimate titles to land prefer to establish
reserves rather than encourage cattle owners to set up modern ranches, so be
it.
If Plateau has opted for it
after herdsmen slaughtered men, women and children (especially babies) in
isolated communities for more than ten years, I hope Governor Simon Lalong has
consulted his people and secured their approval to do so. I know, for sure,
that Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has vowed his state will not be part
of it, but politicians are like chameleons. Whatever he does, he must implement
the wishes of his people. That is the bottom line of this matter. Every state
governor, whether they are of the APC or PDP or any other party, must consider
the implications of creating and handing over lands for grazing reserves to
Fulani cattle businessmen and their armed militias. It simply means you have
converted them to automatic indigenes of your state. If that is what the people
of your state want then go ahead. Otherwise, you will be setting the perfect
scenario for future wars between the children of the indigenes and the Fulani
“visitors” in years to come.
Fulani herdsmen will not
always be allowed to continue to terrorise other Nigerians unchecked. A time
will come when people could take matters into their hands, even if it means
confronting the law enforcement agencies which are reluctant to enforce the law
and protect those being attacked in their communal lands. Buhari will not
always be there to guarantee the safety of those he wishes to foist on
indigenous communities through this ethnic expansionist policy. The only
sensible alternative, I restate, is to create a national policy to covert
herdsmen into ranchers.
Ranching is a business –
big business. Modernised animal agriculture is an essential part of our drive
for employment, economic diversification and self-sufficiency in food. We must
plan big for it and make it attractive for as many Nigerians as possible to
venture into it. Animal agriculture does not have to be an exclusive ethnic
occupation or preoccupation. Ogbeh and his paymasters are blundering into a
foolish and explosively risky national policy which consequences they may not
be around to shoulder. They must be stopped by well-meaning Nigerians and
people of good will before they plunge this country into another Sudan Darfur.
A word is enough for the wise!
*Nnanna is a columnist with Vanguard newspaper
No comments:
Post a Comment