Wednesday, July 8, 2026

Cows overrun motorists in downtown Abuja, cause destruction

Despite widespread opposition against open grazing in Nigeria, President Buhari has refused to yield on carving out grazing routes for cows across 25 states.

• September 3, 2021
Cows on Abuja road
Cows on Abuja road used to illustrate the story

A herd of cattle on Friday marched onto Lugbe Airport Road in Abuja, causing destruction to vehicles and inflicting injuries on road users.

A video of the incident was published on Twitter on Friday afternoon, eliciting echoes of outrage and frustration from Nigerians.

Motorists decried the disruption caused by the cattle, saying they had become a menace across even the nation’s capital.

There are existing regulations enacted by Abuja city administration against open grazing of cows around the city centre, but herders have only sparingly complied.

President Muhammadu Buhari has faced charges of allowing the herders to flout laws against open grazing across the country.

Although he strongly denied claims of sympathy towards herdsmen, he has nonetheless insisted on carving out grazing routes for cows across 25 states, saying the colonial era regulation should still be followed in the 21st century because nomadic cattle grazing is a way of life amongst his ethnic Fulani people.

Abuja residents have witnessed repeated cases of cows blocking major roads as they forage around the nation’s capital.

In a Twitter post that included a short video clip of today’s accident scene, a Toyota Camry was seen damaged from behind, with witnesses immediately attributing the chaos to the cows that could still be seen roaming freely along the busy highway.

A spokesperson for the police in Abuja did not immediately return a call seeking comments about the incident.

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Embraer E175 aircraft

NationWide

Air Peace expands routes with Embraer E175

The disclosure was made in a statement by the airline’s spokesperson, Efe Osifo-Whiskey, on Wednesday in Lagos.

Jigawa

States

Windstorm kills three, displaces 5,403 Jigawa residents

The secretary said the state government distributed relief items to the affected persons to ease their sufferings.

Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni

States

2027 Hajj: Yobe pegs N7.5 million as initial deposit

The chairman warned members of the public against entrusting money to unauthorised individuals claiming to facilitate hajj registration.

Armed policemen in Benue State.

Hot news Home top

Parents arrested over alleged beating of Kogi teacher to death for disciplining son

Ms Saliu said the investigation showed that Ms Usman was assaulted on June 17 at her residence by a pupil’s father for allegedly disciplining his son during school hours.

Lagos Port

Lagos

30 vessels laden with petroleum products, other items expected at Lagos ports

The authority said the vessels are expected between July 8 and July 20.

Ogun State Water Corporation's logo

States

Ogun water corporation cuts supply to three communities over illegal connections 

The corporation urged residents to visit the water corporation as soon as possible to process their registration and reconnection.