…Southern Governors Should Arm Their Security Outfits – Omokri
LAGOS – Reactions have been trailing President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive for the approval of review of 368 grazing sites across 25 states in the country, with some Nigerians urging the president to bury the idea.
The President’s directive followed his approval of recommendations of a committee to review “with dispatch”, the grazing sites across the states “to determine the levels of encroachment.”
Presidential Spokesman, Garba Shehu in a statement on Thursday, said the committee among other things had “recommended the collection of field data on 368 Grazing Reserves across 25 states to assess encroachment and encroachers, stakeholder engagements and sensitization.”
A member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Jude Idimogu while speaking with Saturday Independent, noted that the Nigerian Constitution as of today gives custody of land to state governors and therefore, the Federal Government cannot take decisions on what the land should be used for.
“As of today, the Constitution of Nigeria gives custody and ownership of land to state governors, so even if the federal government needs land from any state, it is the state governor that will allocate the land to the Federal Government, the state governor will be the one to give such approval,” the lawmaker said.
He further explained that if states have enacted laws to ban open grazing, the Federal Government lacks the power to impose it on them.
“If states have enacted the open anti-grazing law, how can the federal government get the land for grazing? Moreover, the open grazing thing is archaic and people have moved beyond it, we are now talking about having ranches where you can have your cattle and everything you need will be at your disposal.
“Why are we still talking about moving cattle up and down? It is very shameful. Why should cattle be moving around in cities and even Abuja, which is the Federal Capital Territory? The Federal Government should bury that idea of open grazing.
“Maybe the Federal Government would have to amend the constitution in such a way that would make them snatch the ownership of land from state governments,” Idimogu added.
Also reacting, a former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri, called on governors from the southern region of the country to start arming their various security outfits in their states.
Omokri, who said the governors should arm their state police the same way Kano State armed Hisbah, noted that whatever law empowered Hisbah, should also allow southern governors to establish their own version.
In a tweet, the former presidential aide wrote: “With today’s order by Buhari for grazing reserves in 25 states, southern governors should start arming their state police in exactly the same way Kano has armed Hisbah.
“Whatever law allows Kano to have Hisbah should also allow southern states to have their own version!”
Source: Independent NG
