The Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Sunday called on all Fulani herdsmen in some parts of the country, especially in Benue and Taraba states, to relocate to Kano State.

Ganduje said Kano State had “vast grazing land” to accommodate herdsmen and their cattle.

The governor stated this during the monitoring of the state’s “free vaccination of over one million cattle and other small animals” at Kadawa Artificial Insemination Centre in the Garum Malam Local Government Area of the state.

The exercise titled, ‘Towards Conservation of Livestock Resource and Animal Protein for Citizens of Kano,’ was part of activities marking the 2017/2018 livestock vaccination programme.

Ganduje, who condemned the “recent killings during the clashes between farmers and herdsmen,” said they were unacceptable.

The governor said the vaccination was initiated to keep animals healthy and improve the economy of the state.

He said as part of the government’s commitment to encouraging herdsmen in the state, Kano State Government had been providing facilities that would accommodate the herdsmen and their cattle to discourage them from moving to other states in search of grazing land.

Ganduje said, “Fulani herdsmen of Kano origin do not move out of Kano to other states because we have enough grazing land, ranches and traditional stock route. They don’t have any reason to move out of the state. We take care of them and we accord them the respect and dignity they deserve.

“I am inviting herdsmen from all parts of Nigeria to relocate to Kano because we have enough facilities to accommodate them. We have grazing land in Rogo, Gaya, Kura, Tudun Wada, Ungogo and other places, where facilities have been provided to accommodate the herdsmen and their cattle.”

The governor added that his administration was already in collaboration with the Federal Government and foreign agencies to convert the Falgore Game Reserve into a modern grazing land.

“Falgore Game Reserve can take care of millions of herdsmen and their cattle in Nigeria. The location has been designed to accommodate schools, human and animal clinics, markets, recreational centres and other social amenities that would provide the herdsmen enough comfort to take care of their animals and transact their business without any hindrance.

“These killings must stop. We cannot afford to continue to witness these senseless killings in the name of Fulani herdsmen and farmers clash over lack of grazing land when we have a place like the Falgore Game Reserve, which is being underutilised.”

Ganduje also said his administration had embarked on the registration of herdsmen and their cattle to enable the government to take care of them through free vaccination and other incentives.

‘Tiv people flee 25 villages’

The indigenous Tiv people of Kadarko in the Keana Local Government Area of Nasarawa State have reportedly fled 25 villages over attacks by herdsmen.

Community leaders, under the auspices of the Concerned Indigenous Tiv People of Kadarko, said this at a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday.

Spokesman for the group, Dr Benjamin Agbede, said they decided to cry out because there appeared to be an orchestrated plot to force them out of their ancestral land.

He explained that they were worried that since the outbreak of hostilities on January 15, 2018, Tiv farmers had been left to their fate.

Agbede said, “It is on record that the governor (Tanko Al-Makura) visited the areas and saw the dead bodies on January 30, 2018, but he merely directed that the corpses should be buried by the families of the deceased without any assistance.

“We were shocked that a paltry sum of N500,000 was made available to be shared by the families of those killed and those in different hospitals.

“For the avoidance of doubt, 12 people were killed and more than 30 are receiving treatment in different hospitals.

“We are deeply worried that although the area is inhabited by other ethnic nationalities, only the Tiv people are targets of the terrorists.”

Another community leader, Felix Akie, said, “We wonder why the police did not respond on time to save our people after we made distress calls when the shootings and killings were going on in Agwan Tiv.”

They appealed to the federal and state governments to come to their aid by ensuring that peace returned so that they could return home and resume their normal lives.

The community leaders named some of the 25 affected villages to include Azer, Tamen Bature, Dooga, Che Utsaha, Nyam Adaga, Cha, Igbacha, Shatse, Ngur and Nguchi.