No land for ranching without Benue’s consent, Alia warns
Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has rejected any plan to establish ranches in the state without the approval of his administration and the people of Benue.
Alia spoke on Tuesday during a town hall meeting with stakeholders from Katsina-Ala, Ukum and Logo federal constituency as part of his statewide engagement with residents.
The governor said Benue would resist any attempt by the federal government or other external interests to acquire land in the state for ranching.
“Nobody will force us to cede even an inch of our land to pastoralists for any purpose,” he said.
“If that must happen, I can assure you, it will not be this time that I am still the governor of Benue.”
His position comes amid the Federal Government’s proposed ranching programme, which is designed to address the longstanding conflict between farmers and herders that has resulted in killings, displacement and destruction of communities in Benue and other states.
The Federal Government had announced plans to commence the programme with a pilot project in Plateau State before extending it to Benue, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Adamawa and the Federal Capital Territory.
At the town hall meeting, Alia also announced new measures to strengthen security in Katsina-Ala, Ukum and Logo.
He said three military operational units would be established in the area under the newly created 5 Division of the Nigerian Army.
According to him, the units would be located in Agu, Katsina-Ala; Anyiin, Logo; and Azendeshi, Ukum.
