…Ranches can’t be done overnight
…Needs 140bn to covert 14 grazing reserves to Ranches
BY BENEDICT NWACHUKWU, ABUJA
Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufa’i says the solution to open grazing is not hasty legislation that cannot be implemented.
He said the northern governors had long ago taken a decision against open grazing, knowing that it is not a sustainable way of livestock production and herders must move towards ranching.
He added that moving towards ranching could not done overnight as there must be plans, resources and ‘will’ to implement it sensibly.
He said, “We have taken a decision a long time ago that open to grazing is not a sustainable way of livestock production; that we must move towards ranching but moving towards ranching is not done overnight. We have to have our plans, have resources and have to implement it sensibly.
“It is not a matter of populist legislation saying that tomorrow this or that. It’s not the solution. We have taken a decision as northern states’ governors and we are implementing that. In my state for instance, we are developing a huge ranch where we can settle the herders. But can it be done overnight? No.”
The governor insisted that the project of ranching was capital intensive, noting that “this project we are doing will cost us about 10bn naira. The CBN is supporting us with 7.5bn naira and it will take us about two years to build. We will be setting about 1,500 Fulani herders’ families in the hope that they will see there as an alternative way of producing livestock instead of running up and down with cattle, going into people’s farms, destroying one crop or the other, causing problems. We want to solve the problems,” he added.
Gov. El-Rufa’i warned that politicising the problem will not bring solution but maintained that the herders were from the north and the northern governors had decided on what to do and there was no going back.
On the various petitions and agitations against the APC Ward and LG congresses, he said “a political process is a process of contention. There is no way you have congresses and there will be silence. There will always be someone who is not happy with the outcome.
“Whenever you have election, whoever loses feels he lost unfairly. If you have concensus, the way the positions are shared, some people will feel they are more important than the number of scores they got. Issues are always there and they are part of political process.
“In every party, in every country all over the world, you have caucuses, you have factions, you have tendencies and they will not always agree. But at the end of the day the mother of the party which is the national headquarters has a duty to sit down and reconcile all groups, impose discipline and ensure there is fairness,” he said.
According to him, the Sen. Abdullahi Adamu-led committee would go to the states where there are too much shouting to reconcile them.
He declined
efuscomment on the defection of former Minister of Aviation Femi Fani-Kayode, Gov. El-Rufa’i said he does not comment actions taken by the party leaders arguing that it is their prerogative to decide who is welcomed to the party or not.
He also refused being dragged into the VAT matter saying that the matter is already in court but noted that the decision of the Supreme Court in the matter would be the law.
