Shehu Sani says dialogue between South-West Govs, Miyetti Allah won’t solve herdsmen crisis
A former Senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani has declared that the meeting between South-West Governors and Miyetti Allah is a good development, but that the move will not resolve the problem of insecurity in Nigeria.
Shehu Sani who made the comments on Friday as a guest on the breakfast television show on AriseTV called on governors of northern states to take urgent steps to resolve the Fulani-Herders crisis.
The former lawmaker also stated that the movement of herdsmen across states must be halted while grazing reserves must be provided by states where the herders hail from.
Shehu Sani said; “The dialogue going on between the governors of the Southwest and Miyetti Allah is a good step, but it is not going to permanently resolve the problem. As long as people are allowed to move and roam about with cattle from one state to the other, there is bound to be conflict. It will calm the problem down but it is not going to solve it.
“It is for the northern states, particularly where these cattle rearers and the Fulani ethnic group come from to set up grazing reserves and attach them to agro-allied industries involved in hides and skins and cheese to make business out of it.
“Cattle business in the 21st Century is a multi-billion dollar business. In the 21st Century, it is not possible for people to move about with cattle on people’s ancestral lands and property and you don’t expect crisis to come in.
“This has gotten to the point of affecting harmonious coexistence between people from the North and those from the Southwest.
“I believe that the permanent solution will be to find a permanent place in most parts of the North, because the North covers about 75% of Nigeria’s land mass. There is enough land for these cattle and these herdsmen to graze in peace with people who are not hostile. So, it should be harnessed and it should be used because whatever is being applied, as far as issues are concerned, on the table, it is still not going to solve the problem as long as cattle will move from state to state,” he added.