Jonathan Nwokpor
The opposition to ranching in the South-East by certain groups within the zone, particularly the International Group for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Intersociety, has been deemed unfortunate by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN).
The Intersociety had warned South-East governors not to give up any land in the zone for ranching, ZINGTIE had reported.
MACBAN, however, claimed that the group’s stance was tinged with ethnic hatred in a statement that was made accessible to ZINGTIE on Saturday.
Bello Aliyu Gotomo, the National Secretary of MACBAN, signed the statement.
It reads, “The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) takes exception to the recent statement issued by The International Group for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law insisting that the Governors of the Southeast states should refrain from allocating land for herders’ grazing and trailer parks.
“We interpret the submission of the group as laden with ethnic hate and dysfunctional in this age when patriotic Nigerians are bent on charting a common front for a united and progressive nation.
“Such a position by a group that claims international exposure bears so much national deficit and should therefore be rightly seen as most divisive and unbecoming of any organisation that rationalises multi-ethnic nationhood.”
MACBAN implored the governors of the Southeast states “to disregard hate statements such as this from relevance-seeking individuals or organisations whose wishes tend towards fanning the embers of ethnic hate in the country.
“We remain optimistic that the Governors of the Southeast, along with all well-meaning persons and organisations in Igboland, will continue to recognise our essence in the livestock value chain in the geopolitical zone and continue to be fair in accommodating our people.
“Recognizing the industrious nature of the Igbo people and their successes across the globe (outside their traditional homeland), we trust in their continued hospitality towards our people in Igboland.
“We implore the different tiers of government to take a critical look at the security challenges across the country and save Nigerians the humongous losses in materials and lives.
“We maintain that criminals of whatever shade are weighty burdens to society. It behoves the government to ensure that they are tracked down and made to face the full wrath of the law.
“No group(s) should be made to suffer blanket demonization because of criminal activities of some persons traceable to the group(s).
“We are optimistic that the Nigeria every patriotic Nigerian envisions materialises to our collective good.”
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