Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, says the full weight of the law will be brought to bear on those who violate the Anti-Grazing Law of the state to ensure the continued protection of lives and property of citizens.
This comes after a recent attack on Amarata youths in Yenagoa Local Government Area of the state by Fulani herdsmen.
The youths, who went to the bush to confront the herdsmen after they allegedly raped a woman on her farm, were overpowered by the armed herdsmen, and some of them came back with machete cuts inflicted by the herdsmen.
Represented by his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, the governor stated this on Wednesday at Government House, Yenagoa, during an interactive meeting with local government chairmen, traditional rulers, and other community leaders from six local government areas currently experiencing herdsmen’s invasion.
He stressed that the Anti-Grazing Law of the state was enacted to forestall violent clashes between herders and owners of farmlands, which had resulted in wanton destruction of lives and property in some parts of the country.
Senator Diri, who condemned the recent incidents reportedly perpetrated by herdsmen in some communities in the state, said about two weeks ago, a woman from Amarata community in Yenagoa, the state capital, was raped by the cattle rearers on her farm, while another was attacked to death in Ogbia.
The governor reiterated his charge to traditional rulers and local government council chairmen to take charge of their domains and enforce the Anti-Grazing Law to ensure peace and stability across the communities of the state.
He equally called on youths, particularly youth presidents, community development committees (CDC), as well as women leaders, to be vigilant of any security breach in their communities and report to the appropriate authorities for necessary action.
Governor Diri also directed all the local government council chairmen to activate the Anti-Grazing Law by forming enforcement committees and submitting the list of committee members within the next three days to the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.
“By Friday, all local government council chairmen must submit their anti-grazing committee members to the office of the SSG. We are in a semi-emergency situation, and we need to deal with it as an emergency.
“Going forward, paramount rulers of communities that superintend their areas as second- or third-class rulers must monitor and promptly report to the government. If you don’t report to us and we come there to find out, you will be our guest through the police. So, the responsibility of keeping your domain safe is now laid on your shoulders.
“Youth presidents should not concern themselves with only issues of development levy. I am a little bit embarrassed that the same Epie-Atissa youths, who are always going around collecting money from anybody who wants to develop their land, cannot go to the forest and challenge these herdsmen. That is cowardice, timidity, and primitivity.
“This meeting is to remind all that an Anti-Grazing Law exists in this state. And the Governor, despite his lenient, simple, and peace-loving disposition, will not allow this Ijaw land to be invaded by any herdsmen.
“No inch of Ijawland has ever been conquered. If our fathers handed over an unconquered land to us, then we have a duty to protect that unconquered territory and also hand it over to our children unconquered,” he declared.
In his remarks, Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Nimibofa Ayawei, stressed the need for effective collaboration between communities, clans, and the state government to check the menace, stressing that open grazing is not allowed in the state.
In their contributions, the Chairman of the State Traditional Rulers Council, His Royal Majesty King Bubaraye Dakolo, and the Paramount Ruler of Igbogene Community, Prof. Augustine Ekein, urged the government to be more preventive by effectively policing the entry points of the herdsmen and their animals.
While acknowledging the role of community leaders in implementing the Anti-Grazing Law, they submitted that not much would be achieved with mere reporting of the presence of herdsmen in the communities if drastic measures were not taken against violators of the law.
Also speaking, the Paramount Ruler of Edepie Community, Chief Shadrach Etidie, recalled the harrowing experience his community suffered at the hands of the police for taking steps to tackle the menace and urged security agencies to support communities in enforcing the Anti-Grazing Law.
