Fulani herders/Farmers crisis: Senate says solution lies with States, LGs

As farmers/herders’ crisis escalates across the country, Nigeria Senate on Monday said, it’s largely a local crisis that requires a local solution which can be handled by States and Local governments.

Senate leader, Senator Yahaya Abubakar Abdullahi stated this while interacting with journalists ahead of lawmakers’ resumption on Tuesday.

He declared that Senate would have a thorough debate on the problem of insecurity emanating from incessant clashes between herders and farmers across the country with a view to having a lasting solution.

The leader revealed that a motion to that effect has already been prepared by the Senate Deputy leader, Senator Robert Ajayi Borrofice preparatory for Tuesday’s debate.

“The Senate is disturbed that such crises in addition to armed banditry and Boko Haram insurgency, remain unabated and there can’t be development where there is no peace, the very reason, state actors at the grassroots need to be more involved in stopping them”, he said .

He added that interventions from all fronts against the crises are urgently required as ethnic enterpreneurs are trying to take advantage of the ugly situation.

His words: “With some kind of ethnic coulaouration of the Herders / Farmers clashes , urgent attentions are required at various levels of government to prevent them from further escalation.

“These are kind of crises that must be addressed promptly and squarely in preventing ethnic entrepreneurs from hijacking the whole situation and putting the country in danger.

“There are existential issues that have set communities that have hitherto lived together peacefully, against each other either for political advantage or political matters.

“I think these are issues that should be resolved at the local level either through dialogue anchored on the spirit of give and take.

“Whatever crises that are involved should be resolved by political leaders at appropriate levels be it, at the National Assembly, at the level of the Governors, local Government and even councillorship level where state actors are expected to sit down with their people so that a lot of these issues can be articulated and addressed by the local population.

“Infact, this is what the Governors at their levels should do and not always running to the presidency, to solve one dispute here and there.

“This is a federation and we are all politically responsivble leaders. I can assure you that in no distant time, these intercommunual conflagrations would be resolved.

“So, hopefully Tuesday or Wednesday this week, a general motion that will be sponsored by the deputy Senate leader, Ajayi Borroficce, will be debated on the floor of the Senate”.