The Senate, the House of Representatives, Taraba and Benue state governments on Wednesday berated the Minister of Defence, Maj.Gen. Musur Dan-Ali (retd.), for calling on state governments to suspend their anti-open grazing laws, describing the call as illegal.
While the Senate and the Benue State Government asked the minister to withdraw his statement, Taraba and Ekiti states rejected the call by Dan-Ali.
The minister, after a security council meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Tuesday, had said the suspension of the laws would reduce tension.
The anti-open grazing law is currently operational in Benue, Ekiti and Taraba states.
Dan-Ali, in a statement by his Public Relations Officer, Col. Tukur Guasu, also called for creation of safe routes for herdsmen.
But the Senate, at the plenary on Wednesday, criticised the minister. The upper chamber of the National Assembly asked him to withdraw his statement.
Raising a point of order, Senator Barnabas Gemade (Benue North-East) faulted Dan-Ali’s statement and urged the Senate to ask the minister to withdraw the statement.
He also stated that the states were empowered by the Land Use Act to take ownership and management of land resources.
The lawmakers unanimously granted Gemade’s prayer to “ask the minister of defence to withdraw his statement on his call for the withdrawal of the anti-open grazing laws in Benue and Taraba as these laws were properly enacted in accordance with the states’ Houses of Assembly.”
Reacting to Dan-Ali’s statement, Gemade said, “This is not the first time that we will hear this kind of absurd statement coming from no less a personality than the minister of defence. If a minister of defence is calling for anarchy, where else can we find peace?
“We understand that the minister comes from Zamfara State and I wonder if all the killings in Zamfara that are almost equal in number with the ones in Benue, are also as a result of the anti-open grazing law. And if by his own experience, the killings in Zamfara have nothing to do with the anti-open grazing law, why does he believe that the killings in Benue and Taraba states are because they enacted the laws?
“These killings have been on for seven years before the laws came into operation. So, what was responsible for the killings at that time? And now the killings in Zamfara have not ceased, yet they have not made a law prohibiting open grazing. “We think that this republic is probably being misadvised by those who have been given appointments to take responsibility for the good governance of this nation. Therefore, they must be cautioned.”
Gemade added, “It was very strange to me that in the mind of the Minister of Defence of this nation, the only way he can solve the problem of hundreds and thousands of people being killed in Benue and Taraba states is that the laws they made against open grazing of cattle – where you cannot control the conflict between herdsmen and farmers – should be removed, so that whatever semblance of law to keep law and order should be removed and anarchy can go on as was the case before.”
In his submission, Senator John Enoh (Cross River-Central), described Gemade’s arguments as logical.
He said, “If killings had been going on for the past seven years and the enactment of the anti-open grazing laws by Benue, Taraba and Ekiti states was just about one year ago, what it means is that going against the laws will not be the solution to the killings. That means the anti-open grazing law is not the reason why the killings are taking place in the states.”
Also, the House of Representatives asked the National Security Council not to direct states to suspend their respective anti-open grazing laws.
The House said such a directive would infringe on the constitutional powers of the states to make laws for the security and welfare of their citizenry.
It passed the resolution after a member from Benue State, Mr. John Dyegh, brought up the NSC’ decision under matters of public importance.
Dyegh, a member of the All Progressives Congress, reminded members that the 1999 Constitution empowered state Houses of Assembly to make laws for the states.
He cited some laws made by states before the anti-open grazing laws like the laws prohibiting the sale of alcohol and prostitution.
The lawmaker noted that it smacked of hypocrisy to say some laws were acceptable, while others were not.
He added, “The laws against sale of alcohol and prostitution are there. They are still being implemented as we speak, no matter how inconvenient they are to the victims.
“Why is the anti-open grazing law an issue? Under the Land Use Act, land is vested in the hands of the state to hold in trust for the people. Why is the law against open grazing such an issue to them?”
Rather than asking the states to suspend their laws, the House called on the Federal Government to submit a supplementary budget to develop cattle colonies in the 11 states that volunteered land for the purpose.
The session, which was presided over by the Speaker, Mr. Yakubu Dogara, passed the resolution in a unanimous voice vote.
Also, the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has faulted the minister.
The governor, through the Commissioner of Information and Orientation, Mr. Lawrence Onoja Jnr. asked the minister to withdraw the statement.
Ortom, who expressed surprise at the minister’s statement, noted that his outburst was at variance with the position of the National Economic Council, presided over by the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbanjo, which had endorsed ranching as the best global practice.
The governor stated, “We call on Mansur Dan-Ali to, as a matter of urgency, withdraw this highly offensive statement against Benue State and the victims of herdsmen killings in the state.
“Over 500 Benue indigenes have so far lost their lives to herdsmen invasion of the state since the New Year day.”
The governor said that while the minister was dissipating his energy on the law, he had yet to call for the arrest and prosecution of the Miyeiti Allah leaders who had allegedly openly and consistently threatened more bloodshed in Benue on account of the law.
He said that the state government had acted within the ambit of the constitution, which empowers states to make laws for the good governance of the people.
Ortom said that there was no going back on the implementation of the law as prosecution of offenders was going on smoothly.
“We have no apologies to the Minister of Defence or anyone,” he said. – Punch.
