SEPTEMBER 1 OPEN GRAZING BAN DEADLINE: We Won’t Recognize Your Anti-grazing Policy, Miyetti Allah Tells Southern Governors

As the September 1 deadline set aside by Southern governors for the banning of open grazing nears, herders have said they will not recognise such policy, describing it as satanic.

Herders, through their socio-cultural group, Miyetti Allah Kauta Hore, said the planned policy had been overtaken by events, even as they declared that the group was in support of the federal government’s plan to revive grazing reserves, grazing routes and facilitate ranching in all the states.

Early this year, the month of May to be precise, another herder group, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association  (MACBAN) had supported Southern governors’ ban on open grazing, even going ahead to challenge Northern governors to follow the lead of the Southern counterparts.

“We don’t recognise anti-grazing law. Nobody can do anti-grazing policy in Nigeria where we are constitutionally guaranteed the right of movement and occupation,” Alhassan said, referring to the September 1 deadline set up by the Southern governors to ban the ancient practice of raising cattle.

“I think that (open grazing) has been overtaken by events where the federal government is reviving the grazing reserves and grazing routes. Ranches are coming up across the states. Any policy that will heat up the polity, I don’t think is desirable for the country now.

“I think they are just beating a dead horse. After all, how many grazing reserves do we have in Southern Nigeria. Ninety percent of the cows we have in Southern Nigeria are meant for business. They are not there for grazing. The cattle are taken there for two or three weeks before they take them to the market. We don’t even understand what they mean by anti-open grazing,” Alhassan said, describing it as devilish.

Alhassan threatened the governors over their 2023 political plans of a power shift to the South, declaring they would not get their wish.

“The power that they are looking for, they will not get. We have reported them to almighty Allah to create confusion in the camp of the enemy. And confusion will be their lot. Where is Sunday Igboho? Where is Nnamdi Kanu today? They are all in jail. The God of the pastoralists is protecting them like the God of Elijah that speaks with fire; he has fired all of them.

“They can’t win. They are losers. It is a negative policy.  We are supporting the federal government now to revive the grazing reserves, to revive the grazing routes, do ranches, settle the herders over time. Is that what they don’t want? Then they are the real bandits. If you are looking for a real bandit, it is Governor Ortom (of Benue State). He is the real bandit. And he thinks he can fight the Fulani ethnic nationality. He does not know that we are not only in Nigeria. We are an African tribe.

“We are in charge of the United Nations. The pioneer secretary of the African Union is a Fulani herder. What is Ortom talking about? They better play politics that can unite this country. All these things they are saying, they can’t do anything as far as Nigeria is concerned.

“We are in our country, we are not going anywhere. We will not be intimidated by anybody and we are peace-loving. It’s their own cup of tea. After all, they are the consumers of the cows,” Alhassan said, adding that the plans of the governors had failed.

“Their plans have already failed. See Sunday Igboho there; he is languishing in Beninoise prison. See Nnamdi Kanu who was captured in Kenya. Forget about them. They are the ones sponsoring all these killings. It is the handiwork of Biafra. They want to set the country on fire.”

He went on to threaten Governor Ortom with arrest after his tenure as governor.

“These people know what they are doing. They are just there to steal money, especially Governor Ortom. He is there to steal the money of Benue State. And we are waiting for him. Immediately he leaves power, if EFCC does not arrest him, our vigilante will arrest him and hand him over to the Nigeria Police to be prosecuted like a common criminal. It’s just a matter of time. He will certainly join Dariye and co because he has eaten security votes in billions and he has masterminded the killing of innocent people in Benue State and has lied to the entire world,” Alhassan said.

A source at the Southern Governors’ Forum, who does not want his name mentioned, informed our correspondent that there was nothing to react to about the threat to their members by Myetti Allah.

According to him, “For now, what are you expecting us to react to? No reaction at all. No governor would like to react to such. Let them wait till September 1 whether we are going to enforce it or not. For now, flexing muscles with them or reacting to their threat now will belittle our position as governors of our respective states.

“We don’t need to exchange words with them now. When it is September 1, we will now know who is in charge of our respective states.”

Nigerians Know Sponsors Of Genocide In The Country – Ortom

Meanwhile, Governor Samuel Ortom has said that the narrative by the presidency that his position on the state of the nation amounts to preaching genocide in the country does not make sense.

This is even as the governor said no matter how the presidency tries to blackmail him, Nigerians are more aware of who is promoting genocide in the country.

He said it is rather the federal government, through the presidency, that is promoting genocide by deliberately nicknaming Fulani militia killers across the country as bandits in order to hide their identity, stressing that doing so would only aggravate killings and food insecurity.

Governor Ortom, who made this known in Gboko during the closing ceremony of prayer, praises and thanksgiving for God to address the challenges confronting the Tiv nation and Nigeria in general, said the six-day prayers will not be in vain, adding that God would cause a remarkable thing to happen in Tiv land, Benue and Nigeria as a whole.

He stated that frantic efforts must be made by the presidency to reengineer Nigeria’s security architecture in order to stop the genocide and as well guarantee human and food security in Nigeria.

Also speaking, the Tor Tiv, Ochivirigh Professor James Ayatse warned that any of his subjects that partakes in the shedding of Tiv blood would not prosper.

The paramount ruler also prayed that under his kingship, God would raise a Tiv man to become the president of Nigeria.

The monarch, who expressed delight at the success of the event, urged churches in Tiv land to set aside a day monthly to pray, praise and thank God on behalf of the Tiv nation.

Wike signed the Anti-Open Grazing, Bills into Law regardless of what Miyetti Herders and the Presidency thinks.

Rivers State Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike signed the Open Grazing Prohibition Bill and the Value Added Tax (VAT) Collection Bill as well as the Residents Registration Agency and the Naming and Renaming of Infrastructure Bills into law.

The Rivers State House of Assembly recently passed the four bills into law.

Speaking at the ceremony in Government House, Port Harcourt, Wike stated that it was inimical to development and peace, for any state to condone opening grazing of cattle.

The governor said cattle rearing were an agricultural business and the law, which has specified ranching, was so intended in order to stem clash between herdsmen who go to destroy farmland, crops, and having problems with farmers that lead to fighting and killing of themselves.

He said, “It is no longer a story. All of us know what our people have suffered in terms of this open grazing. Today all Nigerians have come to accept the reality that open grazing is no longer fashionable. Even our brothers in the north have agreed that it is no longer fashionable.”

Wike insisted that the judgement of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt had sufficiently addressed the illegality perpetrated by the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) on behalf of the federal government in the collection of VAT in states.

The governor stated that when agencies of the federal government are allowed to illegally demand and collect taxes meant for states to collect, they strangulate the states financially and turn them to be beggars.

He said Rivers State is standing on the part of history by challenging the illegality of the federal government through the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS).

“Of course, we are all aware that the states have already been strangulated. Most states depend on allocation from federation account. States have been turned to beggars. Hardly will any day pass that you won’t see one state or the other going to Abuja to beg for one fund or the other,” he said.

Wike stated that no campaign of calumny or blackmail on the part of FIRS would make what is illegal to become legal. He dismissed FIRS’ propaganda that 30 states will suffer if some states are allowed to collect VAT.

The governor further stated that the concerns should be on establishing whose duty is it to collect VAT and the constitutionality of such position before talking about who is going to suffer or not.

He said, “In this (Rivers) state, we awarded contract to companies and within the last month we paid over N30billion to the contractors and 7.5% will not be deducted from that and to be given to FIRS.

“Now, look at 7.5% of N30billion of contracts we awarded to companies in Rivers State, you will be talking about almost N3billion only from that source. Now, at the end of the month, Rivers State government has never received more than N2billion from VAT.”

Speaking further, Wike said there are plans already for FIRS to introduce road tax and this is likely to take away more duties from the states, and further emasculate them financially.

The governor said, “Which are the roads? Are they the roads the state government is paying for or the roads federal government has constructed?  So, at the end of the day, they have taken over the functions of the state government and the state is left with nothing.”

He stated that the states have been so emasculated that they could barely survive without monthly revenue received from Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC).

Wike further stated that the over bearing attitude of the federal government, impinges on attaining financial autonomy for the legislature and the judiciary, since the states are not allowed to collect due revenues as specified by the country’s constitution.

The governor said with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) passed and signed into law, there shall be unbundling of NNPC, which means that NNPC remittance to the federation account will be less, requiring every state to look inwards on how to survive.

He thanked the state lawmakers for their courage to have given the bill speedy passage and assured that every area that the law allows the state to collect revenue will be maximised for the survival of the state.

On his part, the speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly,  Hon Ikuinyi-Owaji Ibani described the collection of VAT by FIRS as the worst form of retrogressive tax in any tax regime.

He commended the governor and the state government for challenging the constitutionality of FIRS collection of VAT in states. According to him, the signing of the VAT law will ensure that Rivers’ people are not plunged into extreme poverty.

He said that Nigeria is the only country professing federalism but with a unitary constitution, which is the very opposite of what federalism stands for.

Speaking further, he said the law banning open grazing in Rivers State would serve as both cure to the symptom and the disease of herders and farmers bloody conflicts.