Plateau Killings: Jang Reiterates Call for Ban on Open Grazing

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos

Following the resumption of violent attacks in Plateau State where over 60 persons have been murdered in the last two months, the Senator representing Plateau North in the National Assembly and former governor of the state, Jonah David Jang has reiterated his call for ban on open grazing, noting that now was the appropriate time for it to be outlawed.

In a statement signed by his media consultant, Mr. Clinton Garuba, the Senator said he felt the pain and suffering the recurring attacks had caused the people of his constituency in recent times, reassuring that one day the merchants of evil who were terrorising the Middle-belt and other parts of the country would be brought to justice.

He said, “The coordinated attacks Plateau State has suffered over the years reveal a sinister plot to use the weapon of terror and barbarism to sack towns and villages, killing men, women, and children in service to an expansionist agenda conceived to seize and occupy the ancestral lands of our people.

“The daring methods of the attackers which seem to confound the might and sophistry of Nigeria’s armed forces, seek to return the country to the dark ages despite great advancements in civilization. It also calls to question, the will of government at all levels to secure the lives and properties of its citizens.”

The statement added that the time had come for the federal government to review its strategy in dealing with violent conflicts especially where herdsmen were concerned.

“There is therefore no gainsaying that the time is now most appropriate for open grazing to be outlawed. It is on this solemn conviction that the Senator hereby declares his unflinching support for the campaign seeking to prohibit open grazing, and at the same time call on the government of Plateau State to enact its own anti-open grazing law in the interest of our people and the longevity of the lives God in his provision chose to give us.

It is most apt to call on other States especially those in the Meddle-belt to follow suit.”

While calling on the armed forces to save the country from international ridicule by investigating the authenticity of the video that have gone viral on social media with the aim of identifying, apprehending, and dealing with the herdsmen who were seen brandishing AK47 rifles while feeding a farmer’s harvests, Jang called on the Governor Simon Lalong to suspend his foreign trip at the wake of the killings on Tuesday, to return home to tackle the growing insecurity, uncertainty, and despair in his state.

He said, “An extraordinary national conference must be summoned to discuss purposefully, the incessant waves of attacks on farmers by herdsmen who are now arguably, deadlier than Boko Haram. The conference must have a truly national composition involving all relevant stakeholders from every corner of the country to allow for the aggregation of diverse experiences of the menace across Nigeria and possible ways to permanently end it.”

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