Stop labelling our men bandits, Fulani women warn

Some Fulani women in Kaduna State have lamented the effect of mistaken identity on their men.

Addressing newsmen in Kaduna, President of Reube Fulbe Global Rights and Development Initiative, Halima Usman Yoman, expressed her concern about the incident that happened at Kakura community in Kaduna, were vigilantes and soldiers brutalised Fulanis who were erroneously tagged bandits.

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Daily Trust reported two weeks ago how some Fulani men were brutalised by soldiers and Vigilantes who took them into custody over wrong classification as bandits.

Yoman expressed that such labeling by people made it difficult for their men to move and associate with other people in and around the country.

“We know that in every society, we have bad people, but why is it that, is the Fulanis that are at the receiving end, we know that all the tribes in Nigeria, some people are armed robbers, some people are thieves, some people are whatever we call them, but they have never said this tribe is bandits or they are rustlers, why is it that is Fulanis that are at the receiving end?”

“So, we are crying out, are we Nigerians? We want to know. If we are Nigerians, Government should come to our help so that we can have a free movement like other Nigerians in this country,” she said.

She also claimed that many cows belonging to Fulanis were rustled in Kachia and Kagarko grazing reserves in Kaduna.

Yoman said while the present location of the cows was known to them, they will require help from security agencies to get them back.