Miyetti Allah Cattle
Breeders Association of Nigerian (MACBAN) on Saturday said its attention has
been drawn to the “unscrupulous action of Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti
State against our members who are bona fide citizens of the country.”
A
statement by its spokesman, Baba Othman Ngelzarma, recalled that Fayose on
Thursdayinaugurated a vigilante
group, Ekiti Grazing Enforcement Marshals (EGEM), popularly called
‘Anti-malu’ “in furtherance of his threat to banish our members from Ekiti
State”.
It said Fayose unleashed the marshals “against our members whose
herds of cattle had gone to a stream at Agon Bridge on Federal Polytechnic road
between the time of 2:00 – 2:30 PM to quench their thirst on Friday 21st
October 2016”.
Continuing, the statement
sent to DAILY POST reads: “We have been reliably alerted an impeccable source
in Ado- Ekiti that the Anti-maul vigilante group shot five cows and carted away
with the meat but the herdsman was able to flee with the rest of his cattle.
“We are hereby constrained to implore the federal government
through its security agencies to wade into this unprovoked and primitive
aggression against our members, before this macabre incident develops into
unquenchable inferno involving our members and Ekiti State government.
“No Cattle strayed into anybody’s farmland around that area in
question. As such, the actions of the Anti-malu vigilante are not ant only
provoking, but capable of creating uncontrollable scenarios whose ramification
may go well beyond Ekiti State.
As far as we know , Ekiti State is not an island of its own ,
but a State within the federal Republic of Nigeria and while the Governor is
permitted to carry out actions geared towards protecting the interest of Ekiti
State, such actions should follow the rule of law
We deplore this act of
brigandage and call on Governor Ayodele Fayose to offer an unreserved apology
to MACBAN, and equally set machinery in motion with a view to compensate our
members who lost five cows in this primitive adventure.
“That the brutality of the Ekiti Grazing enforcement marshals
(popularly known as Anti- malu) on herdsmen is even outside the time stipulated
by that law (if the law exists at all).
“The federal overnment should therefore look into the actions
and activities of this committee because we cannot fold our hands while the
only means of survival of our members is taken away and destroyed.
“MACBAN has instructed victims of this aggression and its
members nationwide to exercise maximum restrain while we work towards resolving
this unfortunate incident through mature and civilized manners.
MACBAN further sympathized with the government of Kaduna State,
Sokapu and entire Kaduna South inhabitants over the recent incident that had
claimed so many lives as a result of a discord between our members and
communities surrounding Godogodo environ.
“We see this act as an upsolute brutality exhibited by the
perpetrators and condemnable in all its ramifications. We call on the security
to do all it could to fish out and bring these criminals to book.”
Meanwhile, The Intelligence Officer Prince Alwaleed of the
Miyetti Allah Cattle breeders Association, Sokoto State Chapter, Alhaji
Muhammadu Magaji, has warned its members not to graze Their livestock on farm lands .

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