Governor Rotimi Akeredolu has insisted that the southern governors’ ban on open grazing is irreversible, pointing out that they must protect their citizens.

Mr Akeredolu also asserted that open grazing was unproductive.

The Ondo governor stated this at the ongoing 2021 Annual Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association – Section on Public Interest and Development Law (SPIDEL) in Ibadan with the theme ‘The Role of Public Interest in Governance in Nigeria.’

Mr Akeredolu stated that the lifestyle of open grazing, which was not productive, could not be allowed to continue.

“The federal government must assist those that want to do ranching and spend the way it was spending money on rice production,” he said. “The national livestock programme is so important and must be supported by the federal government to save lives.”

Speaking further, he said, “Those having these animals should also ranch them.”

Mr Akeredolu added that the region would no longer tolerate criminals involved in killing and kidnapping citizens from the forests.

Meanwhile, also speaking during the event, Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi said he was not opposed to the ban on open grazing but only detest ethnic criminalisation of herders.

He said that banning open grazing was good, “but the baby must not be thrown away with the bad water,” asserting that open grazing was a form of occupation to some ethnic groups.

According to him, banning open grazing must be done persuasively.

“We, the elites, must be very careful not to set up our people that have been living in peace against each other. We must guide our utterances as governors, lawyers, and every other profession,” he urged.

Mr Mohammed further explained, “Disintegration can cause a lot of humanitarian crises that are unimaginable. We must come together and dialogue in a manner that will not aggravate the security situation in this country.”

(NAN)