Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, has stated that the state’s 2017 anti-open grazing law, enacted by his predecessor, cannot be fully enforced because it lacks backing from national legislation.
Speaking through his Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, on Sunday, Governor Alia addressed concerns from the Benue Advocacy Network regarding persistent attacks by armed herders despite the existing law.
Tersoo explained, “The governor has been open with the people about the difficulty in implementing the anti-open grazing law because the enforcement body — the Benue State Community Volunteer Guards — are not authorised to bear sophisticated arms, except licensed firearms.”
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He further highlighted the disparity, stating, “But the challenge is that Fulani herders are often protected by armed militias wielding AK-47 and AK-49 rifles. If even mobile police officers have been killed confronting these militias, how do we expect the unarmed protection guards to enforce the law?”
Alia maintained that for the law to be effectively enforced, it would need to be adopted as a national policy, enabling federal security forces to intervene and enforce it across state borders.
“Imagine when our guards attempt to enforce the law, and the herders simply cross into neighbouring Nasarawa State, where the law doesn’t apply — what can we do?” he questioned.
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The governor’s comments followed a statement from the Benue Advocacy Network, titled ‘Questions Governor Alia Is Yet To Answer,’ signed by its president, Enoch Ortese.
Ortese criticized Governor Alia for the escalating insecurity in rural areas, the continuous expansion of internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps, and the failure to return IDPs to their ancestral homes, which was a key campaign promise.
“Instead of fulfilling his promise to return IDPs to their ancestral homes within his first 100 days, the governor is constructing more camps and tents,” the group asserted.
The network also accused the governor of lacking financial transparency, awarding contracts without public disclosure, and failing to complete significant projects in the past two years.
“What has become of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law of 2017? Why are herders increasingly taking over more Benue communities without any visible government action? The people deserve clarity,” the statement added.
In response, Governor Alia stated that the state’s financial records are available at the Budget Office for public scrutiny. He also noted that his administration has cleared six out of the seven months of salary arrears owed by the previous government.
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