Metro
Miyetti Allah speaks in defense of arrested herdsmen
The umbrella body of Fulani herdsmen, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), has claimed that its members are being arbitrarily arrested in Taraba State.
The group stated this in response to the arrest of 54 herdsmen by the Nigerian Police in Taraba State on March 14.
The North-East zonal chairman of the association, Alhaji Mafindi Danburam, who made the group position known at a press conference in Jalingo, described the arrest as arbitrary and inimical to peace.
Danburam explained that some herdsmen had on March 14, went to the Bantaje Cattle Market to sell their cows but that 52 of them were arrested by the police under an alleged instructions of Takum Council chairman, Shiban Tikari. He said the members were later transferred to the state police command in Jalingo.
He said, “We have visited the command and demanded for reasons for their arrest, charges against them and the complainant statement which have not been made available to us.
“We are really in the hands of elements of destruction who believe that a Fulani man has no right to live and enjoy his right as a citizen in Taraba State.
“Takum is now a no-go area for us. Our people are being killed, their animals maimed but nobody has been arrested for these crimes.”
Danburam then called on the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, to intervene in the matter.
READ ALSO: Again Gov Ganduje extends open invite to suspected killer herdsmen
Confirming the report, Taraba State Commissioner of Police, Mr. David Akinremi, said 54 persons were arrested following information the police received that there was a mass movement of people suspected to be the perpetrators of some violent attacks at Bawe, Panshen, Muji 1 and Muji 2 villages in the Takum Local Government Area.
The commissioner said, “About 41 of the suspects claimed they have cows at Kashimbilla. So, we need to verify if there is any evidence that they took cows to Bantaje for sale. We may probably find out from the native and middlemen if they had performed any transaction with them.”
RipplesNigeria… without borders, without fears
Click here to join the Ripples Nigeria WhatsApp group for latest updates.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...