Benue State Governor Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia has charged security agencies in the state to and all stakeholders in the various sectors to ensure the implementation and enforcement of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law which he said has come to stay.
The governor during a security council meeting held at Government House Makurdi yesterday also charged them to emphasize prevention of attacks by armed/criminal herders rather than the reactionary approach.
The resolutions of the meeting which were read by the chief press secretary, Tersoo Kula, also urged all stakeholders to adopt several approaches, especially dialogue on the law.
He said, “A sub-committee comprising the commissioner of police, director of DSS, traditional rulers, NAPTIP, Immigration, Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs (BLGCA) and Office of the Security Adviser to head the team was set up to identify the heads of Fulani herders and report back to the security council in three weeks.
“All stakeholders should note that the anti-open grazing law is still in existence in Benue State and all must respect this fact and abide by the law,” he said. The council also emphasized the need to have a peaceful environment for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to return to their homes.
Council also directed the chief of staff to liaise with the deputy governor to look at the report on the boundary issue between Ohimini and Otukpo local governments as discussed in the previous meeting.
