?Ugly experiences of Igbo communities with Fulani herders reasons for apprehension ? Igwe Itodo

Recently, the association of town unions in Igbo land (ASITA), raised issues over the plan by the Federal Government to acquire land in Imo State and other parts of South-East region to build cattle ranches. Although the modalities for the project were not clearly outlined by the government, especially on who runs such ranches, the group rejected the idea. They said ranching is a private business which individuals should use their resources to buy land, set it up and run it like any other business. They wondered why the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Livestock Development, should single out cattle business to fund to the detriment of other businesses. ASITA, through its National President, Chief Emeka Diwe, said Igbo are already faced with severe paucity of land and have no such land to be acquired by the government and said that the move is suspicious and provocative. Reacting to the issue, a cross section of people from the South- East region, including monarchs, women and youth groups, agreed with ASITA and opposed the idea.

A prominent Igbo leader, Chief Ralph Obioha, said the involvement of the Federal Government in the ranching business is suspicious and should be questioned.

Obioha noted that his suspicion of the FG?s aim is based on the incessant communal conflicts arising from indiscriminate movement of cows and people unknown to locals. He said that ranching should strictly be a private business which ought to be structured and managed privately.

?Ranching should strictly be a private enterprise and should be structured and managed privately. Why is the FG involving itself in ranching? What should be the model that will require the involvement of the FG in ranching? The FG should not involve itself in a private business unless it has other motives.

?I strongly oppose this idea of the federal government?s involvement in the ranching business. My suspicion is based on the rampant communal conflicts arising out of the uncontrolled movement of people unknown to the locals?, Obioha said.

Trust deficit with Fulani herders is the source of the apprehension ? Igwe Itodo

The traditional ruler of Aji/Eseodo community in Igbo Eze North council, Enugu state, Dr. Simeon Osisi Itodo, said it would be difficult for the people of the region to welcome cattle ranching business going by what they experienced in the hands of Fulani herdsmen as anything about cattle business would be viewed with suspicion. He said communities in the South East are still leaking the wounds of mayhem, rape, maiming, killings, kidnapping and even robbery attacks they suffered in the hands of criminal Fulani herdsmen. According to him, the ranching business by the federal government would be difficult to sell in the region.

?Let me use this opportunity to call on the governors of the South-East to reject such proposals as it is a death trap to Igbo communities. The South-East Development Commission should rise to defend and protect the communities. Igbo communities have no land for cattle ranching.

?Enough is enough of the killings, kidnapping, and rape; we can?t have access to our farms any more. Look at the killings in Isi-Uzo Local Government Area where farmers and women were killed and raped yet nothing happened; no FG intervention, and they are proposing land for grazing in disguise. The governors in the five states of the South-East should wake up to the challenges and nip the proposal in the bud.

?The Nimbo mascara is still fresh in the minds of the Igbo. The Eha-Amufu has been under constant attacks and they are talking of land for cattle ranching in the South East?.

The traditional ruler of Nkpunano autonomous community in Nsukka Council, Enugu State, Igwe Patrick Okolo rejected the ranching idea and urged the FG to create an enabling environment for every business to thrive and not to single out a particular business to promote and fund. He said what the South-East region needs is equal opportunity to compete with their peers in other zones. He warned that championing cattle business by acquiring land and funding ranching will only serve as a vehicle for discrimination and disunity.

?The South-East people are known for commerce, industry, technology hub, innovation and ability in buying and selling. The South-East has not much to do with cattle ranching and grazing. The FG?s proposal is a failed project on arrival. The Igbo communities have no land for such business.?

Igbo women oppose it, claiming it is RUGA in disguise

Igbo women under the aegis of Igbo Women Assembly, IWA, also vehemently rejected any plan by the FG to acquire land for ranches in the region. IWA President, Lolo Nneka Chimezie, said Igbo women would resist any attempt to use any part of Igbo land ?as RUGA for herdsmen?.

She maintained that ranching of cattle is a private business, and wondered why the FG is showing special interest in it. ?Igbo women fully align with the ASITA position. It is purely a private business. I don?t know why the FG is so particular about cattle ranching business which we know is a major business of a particular ethnic group. Some Igbo people are also into livestock business but they purchase their land without government assistance.

?We don?t have enough land in the South-East for farming let alone for ranching. The North has always boasted that one of its states is bigger than the entire South-East put together. Why don?t they provide land for ranching instead of looking down south?

?The Federal Government doesn?t buy shops for Igbo traders nor allocate land to them. Even when they struggle to buy land and build their shops, some state governments destroy them without any compensation. So, why should the FG use public funds to build ranches for few individuals? Why is the FG obsessed with settling herdsmen in every part of Nigeria under the guise of ranching? Is there any hidden agenda behind this? We will not tolerate any attempt to take over our ancestral land under any guise,? IWA said.

FG should not force Nigerians to cede land for ranching ? Prof Opata

A professor of African Fiction, Damian Opata urged the FG not to force Nigerians to cede land for ranching, but advised Nigerians with unused portions of land to willfully donate them for ranching, saying that the benefits would be for all Nigerians.

?Ranching is a good business. Sections of Nigeria that have large areas of unused land can donate them for ranching. After all, the benefits will be for every person. However, areas that do not have large unused areas of land, whether in the South-East or any other part of Nigeria, should not be forced to sacrifice the land for habitation and farming in preference for ranching,? he advised.

No land for ranching in South-East ? Igbo youth leaders

The Coalition of South-East Youth Leaders, COSEYL, also opposed the plan to build ranches for cows in the region, alleging that it is a veiled plot to confiscate the people?s ancestral land.

President-General of the youth body, Goodluck Ibem, said Igbo youths would resist any attempt to seize their land under any guise, insisting the Igbo are battling with scarcity of land for various economic activities.

?The good people of the South- East have no land for ranching. The land mass of Niger and Kebbi states is far bigger than the entire five states in the South-East. The question is, why will the FG ignore such large massive land mass in the North and be looking towards the South-East that has the smallest landmass in the country? This is a clear plot to dominate the South- East zone and we will not tolerate it.?

?Cattle business is a private business and it is an aberration for the federal government to use federal budget for private businesses of individuals. It smacks of corruption to use national budget for businesses own by private persons. Anyone with such idea is definitely plotting to loot the money invested in such project?.

A community leader in Ikwo Council area of Ebonyi State, Chief Jacob Ogodo said the proposed ranches could cause crisis in various communities if not well handled. He said that federal government should allow private individuals to acquire land and do their businesses.

?Well, I wouldn?t know the objective, the aim; what the federal government wants to achieve with that policy of grabbing lands for ranches, when we don?t have enough land. I want to believe that Nigeria is running a capitalist system of government where the economic and the political system is being controlled by individuals/private investors. We have private businessmen and women. Ranches, I think are personal business ventures; anybody that wants to go into any business should be free. The modality for the federal government involvement in this is not clearly spelt out.

?We have many Nigerians scattered across the states of the country that buy land, build their shops and do their business there. The federal government should not create crisis by promoting a particular above others and even trying to impose it on the people to acquire their land?.

A group of lawyers under the aegis of Otu Oka-Iwu, also rejected the idea of the government procuring land to set up private cattle ranching. Leader of the group, Chidi Udekwe urged the federal government to withdraw the proposed ranching scheme immediately, and called for a fair business approach that ensures equal opportunities for all Nigerians regardless of ethnicity.

?Otu Oka-Iwu demands that the government focuses on economic policies that benefit all Nigerians, rather than promoting the business interests of a specific group. Any attempt to seize Igbo land for private gain without proper consultation and consideration of local interests is unacceptable. The ranching plan reflects a broader pattern of government policies favoring certain ethnic groups at the expense of others. (Vanguard)

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