South East zone of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders‘ Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) has declared that it will be difficult for its members to obey anti-grazing law in the zone without any alternative.
The deputy director-general of MACBAN, Gidago Siddiki, disclosed this when he spoke on the recent alleged attacks on members of the association in parts of the geo-political zone.
He noted that before the bill was passed into law, they made their position known that it would be difficult for them to obey the law without an alternative.
Siddki said they have been waiting for the relevant authorities in the zone to provide alternatives to open grazing to enable them continue with their legitimate business, stating that nobody has asked them to leave the Southeast.
He described MACBAN as a legitimate pastoralist organisation engaged in the lawful tending of cattle across Nigeria.
He averred that they were deeply concerned about the violence perpetrated against their members and their livestock in the Southeast, as well as the unfounded blanket accusations leveled against them in certain areas in the zone.
„ We urge authorities to investigate these incidents thoroughly and bring the culprits to justice. Regrettably, we have consistently found ourselves targeted by criminal elements and at the same time unfairly blamed for criminal acts we have no involvement in.
„We appeal to the government of the South East and the leaders of our host communities to recognize us as strategic stakeholders and refrain from unfounded attribution of wrongdoing to every herdsman out there.
„We implore them to support us in times of need and instruct their security forces to discern between genuine pastoralists and criminal elements masquerading as such,” he said.
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