The governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, on Saturday, reiterated that the best way to improve the quality of lives of the Fulani in Nigeria and address security problems in parts of the country was to ban their seasonal movement to the central and southern Nigeria.
The governor said that only by settling them in the North can their socio-economic wellbeing be enhanced and protected.
Ganduje said this in Sokoto while answering questions on Federal Government’s suspension of Ruga programme.
He spoke after attending the wedding ceremony of the son of Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya, Ibrahim Khalil.
“There is no better way to improve their lives if you don’t prevent their migration from the North to the Central and Southern parts of Nigeria.
“That movement should be banned, otherwise the Fulani would continue to suffer and the security problem in the country would continue,” he said.
He explained that Ruga was for individual states that can cater for the Fulanis and where herdsmanship should be a socio-economic issue not a socio-cultural issue.
“We cannot ask a state to implement Ruga where the indigenes are not Fulani. It is for states that can cater to the Fulani and improve their herdsmanship,’’ he said.
According to him, there is no better way to resettle Fulani than through Ruga.
“That is why we are developing grazing area or Ruga in Kano State so that the Fulani can be in one place, they can be educated and enjoy all the social services like other people of the state, including health, justice and security. So that the type of herdsmanship they are doing will be improved and they can produce more cows, more milk and prosper economically,” he said.
Governor Ganduje noted with dismay the way the Fulani were being treated in the country, just as he expressed displeasure with some of them who went into banditry.
He assured the people of Kano State that his government would emphasize quality education as well as healthcare in the state.
This, he said, was because as the most populous state in the country, if care was not taken, the population would become a liability.
“We will do all it takes to make sure that it is an asset through human development. That is why our emphasis will be on education and health,” he said.
Reacting to the comments by the governor, a national official of Miyetti-Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) said the call was premature as a national development plan on the matter was being worked out by the Federal Government.
The official, who pleaded for anonymity, told Daily Trust on Sunday that the association supports the modernisation of the cattle-rearing system, adding that migration should be allowed until the development plan was implemented.
According to him, most lands in the North and the central parts of Nigeria were being taken by Fadama farming methods and there were less grazing lands.
“If migration is banned now, what does he [Ganduje] has to offer?” he asked.
