Tolulope Odebiyi, a member of the Nigerian Senate has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to sign an executive order to ban open grazing by herdsmen in the country.
The senator who represents the Ogun West Senatorial district on Wednesday while regretting the invasion of killer herdsmen into the country from neighbouring countries asked Buhari to take immediate action.
Odebiyi said, “It is an indictment on our leadership that people are coming into Nigeria to rape, maim and kill our people. It is upsetting and we must rise up to this occasion. I rise that the President need to speak and calm the nation.
“The President can sign an Executive Order banning open grazing. There are actions that he can take immediately but nothing is being done.”
The South-West region has been in the eye of the storm of late over the activities of killer herdsmen who rape, kidnap and destroy farmlands with their cattle.
During plenary, the upper chamber observed a minute silence in honour of all victims of insurgency, banditry, herdsmen-farmers clashes, and other security challenges despite not including Odebiyi’s motion in its resolutions.
The red chamber agreed to “urge the State Governors to re-invigorate rural governance and convene state-wide inter-communal conclaves and dialogues to promote local conflict resolution and inter-ethnic harmony.”
It also “urge the Federal Government to immediately embark on an operation to checkmate proliferation of firearms and enforce the laws against illegal possession of firearms by arresting, disarming and punishing anyone in illegal possession of arms.”
The Senate further “urge the State Governors to implement the National Livestock Transformation Plan which is a modern scheme designed to eliminate transhumance in order to prevent farmer-herder conflicts and activate highly productive livestock sector in Nigeria.”