Sat. Feb 8th, 2025

From TCNEWS

Igbo Vanguard Group, IVG a sociocultural organization has reasoned that telling governors to carve out lands for cattle rearing might further escalate the farmer-herder crisis.

Recall that during the flag-off of agricultural mechanisation revolution for food security at Minna, Niger State recently, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had advised governors to make lands available in their States to be used by herders, saying doing so would solve the problems of destruction of farms crops and banish hunger from the land.

President Tinubu had said, “I know what it means as an economic sabotage for roaming cows to eat up the crops and vegetation of our land; it could be painful but when we re-orientate the herders and make provision for Cattle revering, the problems will be solved”.

Interacting with our correspondent on this development in Umuahia, Abia State, the IVG President-General, Engr. James Uchegbuo, also said that such a development might also endanger the lives of people, both present and those unborn, denying them also of space to cultivate crops.

Uchegbuo also observed that his agrarian community in Ahuwa-Oboro autonomous community Oboro clan in Ikwuano L.G.A  does not have enough land for agricultural practices let alone making land available for cattle rearing.

“My community including most communities of the Southeast region does not have enough land to cultivate their crops and they might face the difficulties of allocating or mapping out lands to herders”, Uchegbuo said, observing further that issues of alleged land grabbing, killings and destruction of farms crops happening in some states are some of the reasons his community would not donate their lands.

According to Uchegbuo, who is also the President General of Ahuwa-Oboro autonomous community, “Cattle rearing is a private business. You can’t come to my community at Ahuwa and tell me or my people to to give you land for your cows. Such a thing will never happen. We in the South East have not enough land for farming and so how do you expect us to release the same small lands to be used for rearing of cattle”?

He encouraged the Government at the center to site more agricultural projects in the South East, arguing that previous agricultural policies in the country by the former administrations in the country did not favour the region.

The IVG PG also urged the government at all levels to provide farm implements and give soft loans to genuine farmers in the country to support food security.

By NWAMARA

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