by Abo Oyeade
Pan-Yoruba socio-political group Afenifere has welcomed the decision by Fulani leaders in the Southwest to ban night grazing, the use of firearms by herders and grazing by underage children, urging state governments to enforce the measures without delay.
In a statement on Thursday, Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, described the pronouncement by the Southwest Fulani Council as “a welcome development that should be enforced to the letter.”
Earlier in the week, the Chairman of the Council of Fulani Chiefs in the Southwest, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar Bambado II, announced the new restrictions at a press conference in Lagos attended by Fulani chiefs from all six states of the region, including Kwara. He said the ban would “restore sanity and peace in the sector” and pledged to work with the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN Commission), security agencies and traditional leaders to implement the decision.
“The Council affirms an absolute ban on night grazing, underage grazing, and herders carrying firearms or other dangerous weapons unrelated to the profession,” Bambado said, adding that sensitisation programmes in Hausa, Yoruba and English would be rolled out to reach Fulani members in rural and urban areas.
He recalled that Fulanis had lived peacefully with their Yoruba hosts for centuries until recent clashes, and condemned acts of banditry, kidnapping and farmland destruction linked to some herders.
“We call on security agencies, especially the Office of the National Security Adviser, to fish out criminal elements and their conspirators within host communities, while we urge the media to report responsibly to avoid ethnic profiling,” he said.
Reacting, Ajayi expressed optimism that with the new position taken by Fulani leaders, anti-open grazing laws already passed in states such as Lagos, Ekiti, Oyo, Ondo, Osun and others would now be easier to enforce. He also urged the National Assembly to revive a bill to regulate cattle rearing and ranching, which passed second reading in June 2024 but has stalled amid opposition from some northern lawmakers.
“Apart from the fact that open grazing is anachronistic, animals reared in a ranch are usually healthier, safer and more productive, thus making the business more profitable without the risks inherent in open grazing,” Ajayi said.
The group called on livestock farmers to establish ranches for their animals “just as those who are into poultry business and others do,” insisting that strict enforcement of the new measures would promote peaceful coexistence and end recurring farmer-herder conflicts in the region.
