By Omoregie Elvis, Benin
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has urged the Edo State
House of Assembly not to pass the bill for a law to establish the Edo
State Control of Nomadic Cattle Rearing/Grazing Agency and for Other
Purposes Connected Therewith.
It told the lawmakers to throw out the bill because ‘it is retroactive
and backdated to 2016’.
The bill which has scaled through second reading is scheduled for
public hearing Thursday July 6th, 2017.
Edo State Chairman of CAN, Bishop Oyonnude Kure, who spoke at a press
briefing Wednesday said Christians across the state would be mobilised
to attend the public hearing.
Bishop Kure stated that CAN opposition to the passage of the grazing
bill was because it would confer unfair advantage on a particular
section and ethnic group in Nigeria to the disadvantage of indigenes
of Edo state.
Kure said setting up a state agency to cater for a particular section
of the country by depriving indigenous communities of their choice
ancestral homelands and acquiring same for a preferred ethnic group is
contrary to provisions of Section 26 of the Land Use Act.
He stated that it was wrong for the state government to give
indigenous ancestral communal homelands to what he termed favoured
section of the country as nomadic cattle rearing was not customary
among Edo people.
According to him, “From the provisions of Sections 22 and 23 of this
bill, it is implied that the hard earned monies of the Edo Tax Payers
will be used to fund this agency which is primarily geared to take
care of the interest of cattle herdsmen who are engaged in private
businesses.
“Section 14 (1) of this bill states that the Agency shall have power
to operate in the entire state. This makes the Agency too powerful as
it makes Edo State come under the full jurisdiction of the agency.
“This is not good to the interest of the state as the agency will have
wide discretion to create grazing reserves throughout the state.”
Majority Leader of the Assembly, Barr. Foly Ogedegbe, told newsmen on
Monday that the bill said was to criminalize the nefarious activities
of herdsmen.”