Oyo and other southern states have kicked against the proposed plan by the Federal Government to establish cattle colonies in all the states of the federation.
They described the arrangement as a ploy to forcefully snatch lands for the use of Fulani armed militia who, according to them, will sooner than later, unleash terror on their host communities.
They also warned state governments not to be naïve in embracing the proposal which they alleged was aimed at creating a large expanse of land for a group of terrorists.
Oyo State Government said it would examine the content and modality of the Federal Government proposed cattle colonies before allotting lands for the project.
The state Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Toye Arulogun, assured the people of the state that the government would take the right decision on the issue.
The Ebonyi State Government described the proposed cattle colony as a strange and deceptive concept designed to dispossess states of their treasure.
It therefore advocated the adoption of a ranching system as a panacea for curbing the incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers across the country.
Also Governors Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and the leadership of the Imo State House of Assembly have ruled out any plan to release land for the proposed cattle colonies.
Fayose, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, said, Ekiti will not surrender its land for any cattle colonies.
He said, “We don’t give ponds to fish farmers; government does not give pens to poultry farmers, and does not give shops to traders because they are all businessmen.
“A cattle breeder should get a cattle ranch because he is a businessman. We will not surrender our land for any cattle colony.”
Ikpeazu, who also spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Enyinnaya Appolos, said the state would reject plans to establish “any Fulani colony in Abia State.”
He said, “We reject any plan to establish cattle colonies for herdsmen in Abia State. We don’t have enough land for our agricultural activities and our people want more land to farm.”
In a similar vein, the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, described the idea of the cattle colonies as an insult to Nigerians.
The Secretary-General of the association, Chief Sehinde Arogbofa, noted that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government was allegedly handling the issue of incessant clashes between the Fulani herdsmen and the farmers in some parts of the country with levity.
The Afenifere chieftain said the crisis that would be created with the creation of cattle colonies would be worse than the controversial open grazing system which had been rejected by many Nigerians.
Arogbofa stated, “The term colony is very insulting when defenceless people are being killed in their 20s and 30s by some armed men and their killers are not arrested. In fact, I don’t know how to describe it. I think they are only playing on words.
“It is very irritating and insulting to be throwing the idea of cattle colony at us. I think we should do the right thing; we should call a spade a spade.”
