…Says failure to enforce open grazing ban fueling killings
Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take immediate action to restore law and order in Plateau and Benue states, following ongoing violent attacks and killings by armed herders and gunmen.
Falana, in a statement sent to Vanguard on Wednesday, expressed deep concern over the continued bloodshed, attributing the crisis to the federal and state governments’ failure to implement the ban on open grazing across the country.
He recalled that the Northern Governors Forum banned open grazing as far back as February 2021, while their Southern counterparts followed suit in May 2021. In 2022, the federal government officially adopted ranching as a solution to the incessant and deadly clashes between herders and farmers.
“Because of the failure of the federal government and the 36 state governments to implement the ban on open grazing, hundreds of people have been killed by armed herders and other gunmen,” Falana stated.
He therefore urged President Tinubu, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, to take decisive action by directing the 3rd Division of the Nigerian Army in Jos and the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Zone 4 of the Nigeria Police Force, also in Jos, to urgently intervene and restore peace in the affected states.
“The President must act without any further delay,” Falana warned, stressing that lives are being lost daily due to government inaction and lack of enforcement.
This call comes amid renewed public outcry over increasing violence in Plateau and Benue, with many communities repeatedly targeted by unidentified armed groups, leaving scores dead and thousands displaced.
