Taraba Community Seeks Strict Enforcement of Open Grazing Prohibition Law

The Munga Dosso Community in Karim- Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba has appealed to the state government to ensure strict enforcement of its anti-open grazing law to address herders and farmers conflict in the state.

Mr Robert Bukar, Youth Leader of the community, made the appeal on Monday, while briefing newsmen in Jalingo.

The Munga Dosso Community came under attack recently by suspected herders, where scores were killed and property worth millions of naira were destroyed.

Bukar noted that the bill was signed into law by former Gov. Darius Ishaku in 2018. He said that the enforcement of the law would address the lingering farmers/herders’ conflict. He also decried absence of government representatives in the crisis affected community.

The youth leader also said that the community was left to its fate at the time its 12 members were killed by suspected herders and were given mass burial.

“Notably, no government representatives from federal, state, or local levels visited the community after this incident.

“We have a senator, a House of Representatives member, a state assembly member, yet non deemed it necessary to visit us and to listen to our lamentations.

“As a peace-loving community, we always report all incidents and seek assistance from security agencies.
However, we were disappointed by the lack of government representation at the mass burial, where officials failed to commiserate with our people.

“It is true that the state government sent relief materials to the victims but relief materials is not our problem. We expected their solidarity at the time.

“The aftermath of such violence has tragically resulted in not only fatalities but also a significant number of injuries and displacements.

“It has led to a humanitarian crisis that requires urgent attention. Families are left to mourn their loved ones, while survivors grapple with trauma and insecurity.

“Access to essential resources has become increasingly challenging, complicating efforts for community stability.

“Moreover, in all these, our people are often arrested and from police station to prison but none of the perpetrators are brought to justice.

“It is only in the recent crisis that the herders were arrested with assault rifles by the police in Karim-Lamido but were released the next day,” Bukar said.

The youth leader also appealed to government to increase security deployment to allow farmers to safely return to their farms. He also requested Taraba Government to ensure that the recently constituted administrative committee of enquiry carry out a thorough investigation to apprehend and punish the perpetrators of the recent attacks.

 

 

Sourcing: By Martins Abochol / NAN