15022021 - Nigeria being set on fire, Northern elders tell FG

28—Vanguard, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2021
<strong>Nigeria</strong> <strong>being</strong> <strong>set</strong> on fire,
Northern Elders tell FG
Continued from page 5
empowered.”
He added that another
way to address the myriad
of challenges arising from
insecurity was to
meaningfully engage the
people in productive
ventures through
vocational and skills
acquisition training
programmes, saying that
it is a flagship
programme of his
administration.
The governor pointed
out that unless
unemployment was
seriously addressed, the
rate of banditry and other
criminalities in the
country might continue to
rise, adding that the
nation might not exit from
the challenges of
insecurity.
“But, for those who want
to take to the business of
livestock farming, they
can now be groomed,
such that they can have
more productive livestock
rather than the one we get
that trek long distances,”
he said.
Okowa expressed hope
that the call on the Federal
Government to encourage
ranching would be
considered because it was
a way out of reducing the
farmers/herders crises,
emphasising that
ranching was a way of
improving livestock
economy in the nation.
He noted that ranching
would be in the best
interest of all <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns,
as it will improve the
family income and reduce
insecurity in the land.
Earlier, Rev. Ayokunle
had told the governor that
he was at Government
House on condolence to
him and his family to
commiserate with them on
the passage of his father.
He expressed concern
over the increasing rate of
insecurity in the country
and urged those in
government to take urgent
steps to address all
security-related issues.
Set up
enforcement
teams, WIC
tasks S-East
govs
On its part, the World
Igbo Congress, WIC, has
asked the South East
governors to establish an
enforcement team to
implement their ban on
open grazing in the
region.
The diaspora Igbo
group also suggested that
the governors could also
transfer the enforcement
contract to the Eastern
Security Network, ESN,
at no cost.
Public Relations Officer
of WIC, Basil Onwukwe,
said that there was no
wrong way of doing the
right things, noting that
the South-East must
support ESN “because
volunteering to serve is
an immeasurable gift to
our nation and they must
not be discredited or
undermined by anyone.”
Onwukwe said the
decision was reached
after Igbo leaders across
the world met last
weekend under the
auspices of the World Igbo
Congress, hosted by
board chairman, Prof
Anthony Ejiofor.
WIC applauded steps
the governors took to ban
open grazing in their
states, stressing that it is
now time to match words
with action by
establishing an
enforcement task force
that will prosecute open
grazing offenders and
declare the use of bushes
for human habitation a
crime.
“We want to see Open
Grazing Prohibition Task
Force that will enforce the
anti-grazing rules
established in the states.
“There is an existing
law against the
destruction of farm
produce in the Ministry of
Agriculture and the
governors need to enforce
the law by establishing
the task force. The
government may transfer
the ban enforcement to
ESN at no cost.
“It was agreed that the
action will eliminate
herders /farmers clashes
and bring an end to the
use of bushes as a criminal
hideout.
“World Igbo leaders also
called on the Eastern
governors and political
leaders in the South-East
to embrace the activities of
the ESN for the protection
of lives and properties of
our homelands.
“All hands must be on
deck now to ensure that
the rate of killings,
kidnappings, banditry,
armed robbery, and other
hideous crimes caused by
herdsmen in South East
are reduced drastically,”
Onwukwe said.
A-Ibom gov’s
aide cries over
invasion of farm
by herdsmen
Similarly, Senior Special
Assistant to the governor
of Akwa Ibom State,
Udom Emmanuel on
Marketing and Brand
Management, Mr. Ime
Uwah, has raised the
alarm over the invasion of
his farm by herdsmen.
Uwah said the farmland,
located along Airport
Road, Uyo, was first
invaded by the suspected
herders in July 2020, and
again last Wednesday.
He revealed that after
last year’s invasion, his
farm manager challenged
the herdsmen who
rebuffed him and cut his
hand with matchete.
According to him, the
latest incident happened
last Wednesday February
10, 2021, when the
herdsmen <strong>set</strong> fire on
another farm near his
own, while the fire spread
and destroyed over 400
stands of plantains in his
farm.
Narrating his ordeal,
Uwah said: “Sometime in
July, last year, we had an
incident where herdsmen
passed through our farm
land. They normally pass
through the road, but
recently they started
entering our farms. That
particular day when their
cattle entered our farm,
they destroyed our
cassava and other crops.
“My farm manager
approached them and in
response, they decided to
attack him and cut his
hand. We followed up this
matter with the relevant
security agencies in the
state, including the Police
and the Civil Defence.
The Civil Defence has a
unit that oversees matters
of this nature and we
were working with them
to see who will pay for the
treatment but to no avail.
“Just last Wednesday,
they passed through the
farm again and destroyed
our plantation. They went
and <strong>set</strong> fire on a farm
land close to my own. The
fire spread to my farm.
Thereafter, we tried to put
out the fire, they launched
another attack.
“My people actually
tried to put out the fire but
I woke up that night to see
fire again and this time it
burnt down 400 stands of
our plantation. They
threatened anybody that
got close to them. So it
looked as if their aim was
to burn down the entire
plantation.”
However, the state
police command is yet to
confirm the invasion of
the herdsmen as the
Police Public Relations
Officer, Mr. Odiko
Macdon, did not pick his
calls nor respond to text
message at press time last
night.
All leaders need
to work together
on insecurity —
Sokoto,
Zamfara govs
In a similar
development, Sokoto
State governor, Aminu
Tambuwal, and his
Zamfara State
counterpart, Alhaji Bello
Matawalle, yesterday
decried the security
situation in <strong>Nigeria</strong>,
saying the country’s
ON VALENTINE’S DAY—Some adult members of the Deeper Life Bible
Church praying for their youths against the ‘evils’ associated with the St.
Valentine’s Day celebration, during a Combined Sunday Worship Service at Suleja
Region, in Niger State, yesterday. Photo: NAN.
insecurity challenges
requires concerted and
collective effort to
resolve.
The two governors who
were in Boji-Boji, Owa,
Ika North East Local
Government Area, Delta
State to commiserate with
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa
on the demise of his
father, Pa Arthur Okorie
Okowa, stated this while
speaking with newsmen
shortly after the
condolence visit.
Tambuwal, who is
chairman of the Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP
Governor’s Forum,
stressed the need for all
leaders to come together
and work hard to save the
situation.
He said: “Without
security, there can be no
development and there
can be no peace and you
need peace and security
to govern and you also
need peace and security
to carry out business
transactions and even
worship, so it’s key and
very fundamental for
development in any
society.
“So, my charge is that
all of us as leaders must
come together,
irrespective of whatever
views we may have in
terms of approach to how
the insecurity should be
resolved.
“We should all be seen
to be working together in
coming up with a synergy
and a template for
resolving all of these
conflicts.”
On the new service
chiefs, Tambuwal said
they should be given a
chance to show their
capacity to resolve the
lingering insecurity
issues in the country.
“They have just
resumed and I think they
should be given a chance
to work. They know the
issues and they know why
all of us and many
<strong>Nigeria</strong>ns came out to say
that the other service
chiefs should give way for
new hands to come in and
IMO backs NIMASA’s marine
litter action plan
Sof ECRETARY-General
the International
Maritime Organisation
(IMO) Kitack Lim, has
expressed support for the
Marine Litters and Micro
Plastic Action Plan of the
<strong>Nigeria</strong>n Maritime
Administration and Safety
Agency (NIMASA).
The NIMASA Action
Plan, according to the IMO
boss, will provide major
support to ensure a clean
and healthy ocean
ecosystem not only in the
<strong>Nigeria</strong>n coastline but the
entire region.
The Secretary General
made this assertion in his
goodwill message to the
launch event of the
NIMASA’s Revised Marine
Litters and Micro Plastic
Action Plan held virtually
at the agency headquarters
in Lagos.
Kitack Lim stated that the
world is dependent on the
rich ocean environment
and international trade
provided by shipping
clusters and the protection
of the ocean is vital to
ensuring a healthy planet.
In Lim’s words,
“Shipping must be
balanced with the safety of
life at sea, the long term
health, and diversity of
oceans and the
conservation of the marine
environment. Marine litter
is a great concern and the
discharge of garbage from
ships has been prohibited
since the 1980s by the
MARPOL convention and
additionally by the London
convention with each
protocol regulating and also
prohibiting the dumping of
plastics at the sea.”
The Secretary-General
further stated that IMO in
cooperation with the United
they should listen to the
people and do what is
required of them by
securing <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns,’’ he
said.
Matawalle on his part,
lamented that Zamfara
had been the epicentre of
banditry in Northern
<strong>Nigeria</strong>, adding that his
administration has
recorded a lot of successes
using the kinetic and
non-kinetic approach.
He said: “As a person, I
couldn’t just fold my arms
and watch my people
<strong>being</strong> killed. We have
been fighting that battle
using two approaches, the
kinetic and non-kinetic,
and we have recorded
some successes.
“We are all together, we
are the same as one and
we have been preaching
peace because we want
<strong>Nigeria</strong> to remain one.
The security of the nation is
not just for us as government
but for all of us and we have
lots of roles we can play as
individuals, so we can be at
peace as a nation.”
Nations Food and
Agriculture Organization
(FAO), and other relevant
international organizations
are striving to implement
the IMO Action Plan on
marine litters and to
contribute to the global
solution for preventing
marine plastic litters from
entering the ocean through
ship-based activities.
Declaring the proper
launch and take-off of the
action plan, the Director-
General of NIMASA Dr.
Bashir Jamoh noted that
80% of marine litters in the
<strong>Nigeria</strong> environment
originates from land-based
sources and that NIMASA
is committed to the
reduction and elimination
of unnecessary dumping
and improper waste
management as well as to
ensure a cleaner and safer
marine environment to
support a healthier and
sustainable human life.