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Tag: Anti-Open Grazing

  • Benue Anti-Open Grazing Law Still In Force – Ortom

    Benue Anti-Open Grazing Law Still In Force – Ortom

    The Benue State Government has disclosed that the Benue law against open Grazing still stands despite suspending the activities of the implementing agents, the Benue Livestock Guards.

    The state government through the Special Adviser on Media Mr. Terver Akase yesterday said It had become pertinent to clarify the misconceptions regarding the decision of the Benue State Security Council to suspend operations of the state Livestock Guards for two weeks.

    He explained that the Benue State Security Council only suspended the operations of the state Livestock Guards for two weeks.

    He said the suspension of the Livestock Guards was only for a grace period which became necessary to allow for a reduction in the influx of cattle into the state.

    “As Governor Samuel Ortom stated while briefing the press at the end of the State Security Council meeting of Tuesday, April 11, 2023, the action is part of measures to ensure that all those who invaded the state with cattle leave, so that Benue people would have peace and go about their legitimate and lawful businesses.

    “We must stress that the enforcement of the Benue State Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law is still in full force and anyone who flouts the law at the expiration of the two weeks grace period will be apprehended and prosecuted.

    “Governor Ortom once again appreciates the people of Benue State for their support since the enforcement of the law commenced in 2017,” the statement read in part.

  • Anti-Open Grazing Bill Passes Second Reading In Akwa Ibom Assembly

    Anti-Open Grazing Bill Passes Second Reading In Akwa Ibom Assembly

    The bill prohibiting open rearing and grazing of livestock and provision for the establishment of ranches has passed the second reading at the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly.

    Leading debate on the bill at plenary on Thursday, the member representing Oruk Anam state constituency, Udo Keirean Akpan, said when passed into law, the bill would prevent the destruction of farms, crops, ponds, settlements, and properties caused by open rearing and grazing of livestock.

    He said it would also promote the production of healthy breeds of livestock and boost job and investment opportunities in livestock farming.

    “The bill will also manage the environmental impact of open livestock grazing and protect the environment from degradation and pollution caused by open rearing and grazing of livestock,” he added.

    The lawmaker explained that the bill will promote modern techniques of animal husbandry and international best practices in the dairy and beef industry.

    The lawmakers are also seeking to establish the Akwa Ibom State Livestock and Ranch Administration and Control Committee, which would develop an integrated modern livestock development and production plan for the state.

    Akpan explained that the committee will provide technical support on the management and sustenance of ranches and organise training programmes to improve education in animal husbandry and livestock production.

  • BREAKING: Lagos Assembly Passes VAT, Anti-Open Grazing Bills

    BREAKING: Lagos Assembly Passes VAT, Anti-Open Grazing Bills

    The Lagos State House of Assembly has passed the Value Added Tax (VAT) bill, along with a bill that prohibits the open grazing of cattle in the state.

    The two bills were passed after unanimous votes by the lawmakers during Thursday’s plenary after they were read for the third time.

    Following the passage of the bills, the Speaker of the House, Mudashiru Obasa, commended his colleagues for their passion to see that the state continues to grow.

    “I thank you all for this historic exercise,” he told the lawmakers at the legislative chamber of the Assembly in Alausa, Ikeja.

    Obasa also directed the Acting Clerk of the House, Mr Olalekan Onafeko, to transmit clean copies of the bills to the state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for assent.

    The passage comes a day after the lawmakers held separate public hearings on the bills with stakeholders who declared their support for them.

    Details later…

  • Miyetti Allah Asks FG To Stop State Governors From Enacting Anti-Open Grazing Laws

    Miyetti Allah Asks FG To Stop State Governors From Enacting Anti-Open Grazing Laws

    The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) on Monday asked the Federal Government to stop state governors from enacting the anti-open grazing law.

    MACBAN Secretary-General, Saleh Alhassan made the comment during a press conference in Abuja.

    He said the law would undermine the relative peace and stability currently enjoyed in the local communities, threaten the social order and exacerbate cattle rustling.

    “The National Assembly and Mr President should intervene and stop the current attempts by some state governments to criminalise our means of livelihood of cattle-rearing through enacting of satanic and obnoxious laws they call Anti-Grazing Law,” he noted.

    “The Federal Government should create a ministry for livestock and fisheries as obtainable in many African countries. Nigerians should adopt strategies in responding to changes of climate change as it affects livestock production not negative laws.”

    Alhassan noted that anti-open grazing laws would destroy livestock production and send millions who depend on the livestock value chain into poverty.

    The Miyetti Allah leader also called on the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to take an inventory of grazing reserves in the country and fully develop at least one grazing reserve in each senatorial zone.

    He appealed to the National Assembly to rescue the pastoralists by resuscitating and passing the Grazing Reserves Commission Bill and other livestock management bills initiated by the previous assembly.

    While referencing the African Union and ECOWAS Protocols/regulation of pastoralists and trans humans, the MACBAN spokesman asked the Nigerian government to domesticate the law in the country.

    According to him, if the protocols are properly documented and implemented, it will effectively tackle the scourge of illegal migration in Nigeria.

    Alhassan’s remarks come four months after the Southern Governors Forum announced a ban on open grazing of cattle across states in the region.

    The governors after meeting in Asaba, the Delta State capital, asked President Buhari to address Nigerians on the state of the nation.

    It also met months later and instructed states in the region to enact anti-open grazing laws in their domain to curb incessant clashes between herders and farmers.