The association of traditional leaders/Obas of the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), have told Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State that the quit order given to herders has implications for national security.
The governor had last week given a seven-day quit order to Fulani herders to vacate forest reserves in the state, which expires on Monday.
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The association advised that the criminals involved in kidnapping and committing other crimes in the state should be fished out and prosecuted based on their crimes, saying criminalising the whole Fulani herders was not the best approach.
In a statement signed by the secretary-general of the association, His Highness Oba (Dr) Alani Kolawole Adeyemi, made available to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday, the obas noted that the menace of kidnapping and other violent crimes, which have become a nightmare for Nigerians, requires a holistic approach.
Oba Adeyemi, who is also the Sarkin Yoruba of Guyaku in Adamawa State, stressed that the Ondo State governor, though a seasoned administrator and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), needs not be lectured on the implications of the quit order on national security, adding that “the Fulani herders are also citizens of his state whose welfare and well-being are part of his responsibilities.”
The statement advised that concerted efforts should be made so that both the security apparatus of the state, the leaders of Fulani herders in the state and at the national level, as well as all well-meaning Nigerians work towards bringing amicable resolution to the crisis.
The obas reiterated that the Fulani herders have the inalienable constitutional rights to live and work peacefully in any part of the country, hence they appealed to revered paramount traditional rulers across the country to immediately wade into the matter.
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