Anti-Open Grazing Law: Is Uzodimma Playing ‘Judas’?

POLITICAL NOTES

The state of insecurity in southern Nigeria worsened since 2016 when armed invaders from the North and the neighbouring West African countries disguised themselves as herdsmen and stormed the region.

When the level of insecurity in the region became alarming, the 17 southern governors, under the aegis of the Southern Governors’ Forum, met in Asaba, Delta State capital, on May 11, 2021 to deliberate on the prevalent insecurity and other issues affecting the region.

In a 12-point communiqué after the meeting, dubbed the ‘Asaba Declaration’, the forum resolved that open grazing of cattle be banned across Southern Nigeria.

Eight weeks after their meeting, the southern governors shunned criticisms by the Presidency; Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, and the Attorney General of the Federation/Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, and met again in Lagos on July 5 to reaffirm their stance on the Asaba Declaration.

The governors also gave themselves September 1, 2021 deadline for the implementation of Anti-Open Grazing Laws in all the southern states.

However, three days to the deadline, Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State is among the four southern governors that have not initiated the anti-open grazing laws in their states. Uzodimma obviously shocked his southern colleagues when he told journalists after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the State House, Abuja, on Wednesday that he had no intention of enacting the anti-open grazing law.

“I don’t have any law in Imo State for anti-grazing. But what we have done is that we are regulating grazing activities in Imo State under a partnership between our farmers and herders. They have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in my office and agreed to work together. And both parties are going about their businesses without interfering or causing any grievance or anger to each other.”

Uzodimma expects the lawless armed herders to abide by mere MoU instead of enacting enforceable anti-open grazing law.

Is Uzodinma pandering to the wishes of forces outside the state or playing ‘Judas’? While these questions are waiting for answers, the Imo State governor should learn lessons from his Plateau State counterpart, Simon Lalong.

Lalong had blamed the killings of Benue farmers by herdsmen on the anti-open grazing law enacted by Governor Samuel Ortom, only for the armed invaders to later turn his state into a killing field.