The Edo State Governor habs condemned the delay in passing the anti-open grazing bill into law in the state. This the governor disclosed during a meeting with stakeholder on the proposed Anti-open Grazing bill.
He stated that the delay in signing the anti-open grazing bill into law in the state reveals the need to make an implementable law that will put an end to the insecurity in the state.
While speaking he stated that: “We are one of the few states that have not signed the bill into law, and the reason is simple to sign law is very simple, it doesn’t make sense to put out a law you cannot enforce. Obaseki reiterated the need to involve every citizen of Edo state in the decision making inorder to enforce the anti-grazing law”.
“The best way of enforcing a law is to bring everybody together to be part of that law. We have a crisis in our country, it is deeply rooted, there are different causes why these are happening, let us go to the root of the causes and resolve it from there. If we don’t go to the reason why then we will be scratching the surface, let us start by understanding why we are having this challenge. To sign law is very easy, it doesn’t make sense to put out a law that you cannot enforce.The best way of enforcing a law is to bring everybody together to be part of that law”.
According to the Governor, even though there are people who legitimately carry out the business of cattle rearing, there are also those using it to perpetrate crim
“There are people who are doing their legitimate businesses of cattle herding and producing meat and there are criminals who want to destabilise our country and our state,” he said.
However the chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria Edo State chapter, Reverend Oriakhi Davies, said that since cattle rearing is a private business, anyone who does such business should go and acquire land to do so. Reverend Davies also suggested cattle ranching instead of open grazing. He advised governments to create or import cattlefeed, stating that cattle herders can purchase the feeds from the government.
The spokes person of Cattle rearers in Edo, Alhaji Saad Ahmed stated that about 45 per cent of cows consumed in Benin comes directly from the North. He stated that herders face a lot of challenges from residents. He therefore appealed to the governor to treat everyone equally irrespective of their religion or belief.
Obaseki however assured that anti-grazing law is not a religious or ethnic issue but to deal with some perception
“The anti-grazing law in my view is to deal with some perception, I just want to tell you that this is not an issue between Christians and Muslims, it is not an issue between North and South, it is not an issue between Edo people and Fulani people”.
