Southern govs want to use ban on open grazing to negotiate for 2023 presidency —Miyetti Allah

The umbrella body of Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria, the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, has lambasted governors in the southern states over their resolution to ban open grazing in all parts of the region.

According to the group, the southern governors are using the ban on open grazing as a blackmail and negotiation tool in their quest to see the presidency move to that part of the country come 2023.

The National Secretary of the group, Saleh Alhassan, who was reacting to the stance of the Southern Governors Forum after their meeting in Lagos on July 5 that the ban must take effect on September 1, stated that the governors were only playing politics with their resolution to end open grazing as they were “hungry for power” in their quest to have the presidency zoned to the south in 2023.

In a statement issued by Alhassan on Sunday and made available to Ripples Nigeria, the Miyetti Allah said the governors should not have made open grazing an issue in their quest.

Read also: PDP lawmakers back Southern govs on state police, transmission of election results

“They (the Southern governors) are hungry for power. Why are they making open grazing an issue? Is it the only problem in the country? They may not even get the power,” the statement reads.

Continuing, the group said:

“Fulani herdsmen cannot move to anywhere. The Southern governors have not made any alternative provision for them. You cannot just drive away an economic group.

“For herders, it doesn’t matter where the president comes from but if they want power to move to the South, should it be through blackmail? It should be by negotiation, campaign and strategy as well as political understanding. And mind you, this thing is based on numerical strength.

“If they (Southern governors) want to blackmail the North, they may not get the presidency. They are only hungry for power with the direction they are going.”

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