Herdsmen: Religious group chides FG over laxity in tackling menace

By Daniel Agbo

Makurdi

Leadership of the Universal Reformed Christian Church (URCC) has expressed reservation over perceived laxity by the federal government in tackling the protracted crises posed by herdsmen in the country.
Addressing a press conference at the NUJ House, Makurdi, yesterday, President of the reformed church worldwide, Rev. Dr. Ayohol Ate, called on federal government to take positive actions against the herdsmen and farmers crisis, which he said has continued to ravage the country, particularly Benue for close to ten years.
The president, who was represented at the occasion by resident Pastor of NKST Yina, Dr. Kurugh Antiev, lamented inflammatory statements by the herdsmen, as well as federal government’s inaction, adding that government’s silence and inaction was implicitly fanning the embers of crisis in the country.
He urged the federal government to prevail on the herdsmen, by adopting ranching as the modern style of animal husbandry in order to cur b the orgy of killing and destruction.
He further asked the government to approve the establishment of Benue state relief levy, to help rehabilitate those who were displaced by the carnage.
“Since Benue has suffered a great deal of destruction of lives and property worth billions of naira since 2011 as a result of herdsmen attack, federal government should approve relief levy to he collected from all that are carrying out economic activities in states, including Benue to help rehabilitate those displaced and property destroyed,” he noted.
While condemning the act of killing innocent farmers in their homeland by herdsmen in the name of grazing, he said the church is opposed to any agreement or resolution soliciting for grazing reserves, adding “the settlement pattern is already a militating factor.
“We are solidly behind the anti-open grazing law, and nothing should be done to reduce its full force of prosecuting defaulters come November 1,” he said.

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