Miyetti Allah’s cattle breeders appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Assembly to stop the anti-open grazing laws which they described as satanic and against its age-long tradition.
The group said the laws were going to frustrate the livestock business as it suggested Ranching over Open grazing.
It said that Ranching is very expensive and would make activities difficult for the cattle herders, displacing some of them and making life difficult for them.
Therefore they called on the President and the National Assembly to intervene in the matter and stop the passing of the anti-open grazing bill.
Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, the chairman of the South-South Governors Forum and the governor of Delta State, responded to Miyetti Allah’s request by saying that the group had simply demonstrated its lack of understanding of the law.
Mr. Olisa Ifeajika, Okowa’s Chief Press Secretary, said in a statement: “That shows their level of education and knowledge of the law. National Assembly will tell governors to stop making laws to govern their states. Where is that one in the constitution?
“Governors are making laws to govern their states, a group is saying it wants to go to the National Assembly to asked governors to stop making laws to govern their states? It demonstrates their level of knowledge and understanding of the laws of this country. ’’
”Well, let’s see how far they will go with it. I don’t see any governor who will be ready to join issues with them. Governors are heads of their states; so if they are making laws for the good governance of their states, the National Assembly should stop them?
“Maybe they will create their own National Assembly. Anyway, anything happens in this country these days. The governors have the right to make laws for the good governance of their states. They are protected and empowered within the ambit of the Constitution of this land.
“So, they that want to contest it, let us see how far they will go. My governor is not ready to join issues with them at all in any way. I don’t see the National Assembly asking governors not to make laws to govern their states.
“The governors are not trying to make laws to change any federal law; they are to make laws for the good governance of their states and they are entitled to that within the law. I don’t know how they see the National Assembly! To even contemplate it alone, is abnormal.”
