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Why I Said Herders Carry Ak-47 Rifles for Self Defence – Bauchi Gov
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Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, on Sunday, explained himself over a comment he made about herdsmen carrying Ak-47 rifles for self defence, a statement issued by Mukhtar Gidado, his Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on media, said.
Mohammed and his Benue counterpart, Samuel Ortom, had disagreed over the issue of herders carrying guns in order to protect themselves and cattle from rustlers.
The Bauchi governor said that the primary objective of his comment was “to avert the dangerous prospect of a nation-wide backlash and generalisation of the Fulani clan as criminals”.
According to the statement, Mr Mohammed said it would be inappropriate to label an entire tribe as criminals, based on the crimes of a few members of the ethnic group.
“The attention of the Bauchi State government has been drawn to reactions from various members of the public to gov. Mohammed’s speech, at the closing ceremony of the Press Week of the Correspondent’s Chapel of the NUJ in Bauchi State, last Thursday.
“The Governor used the occasion to weigh in on the contentious issue of clashes between herdsmen and farmers, particularly against the backdrop of the eviction and other forms of restriction orders, issued by some state governments and non-governmental entities.
“The primary objective of the Governor was to avert the dangerous prospect of a nation-wide backlash as tempers flared and given that the phenomenon of inter-ethnic migration, is a national pastime involving all ethnic groups in Nigeria.
“By extension, the Governor made it abundantly clear that it will be inappropriate to label any one tribe based on the crimes of a few members of the ethnic group,” said the SSA.
Mr Gidado said that the governor’s reference to AK47 “was simply to put in perspective, the predicament and desperation of those law-abiding Fulani herdsmen who, while carrying out their legitimate cow-rearing business, have become serial victims of cattle rustling, banditry, kidnapping and assassination”.
He said “these were the people who, in the absence of any protection from the security agencies, are forced to resort to self-help, to defend both their means of livelihood and their lives”.
“As a Constitutionalist which, he has proved over time, all through his political career, Gov Mohammed will be the last person to advocate a subversion of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He did not do so in the past; he will not do so today,” Mr Gidador said.
He explained further that Mr Mohammed’s description of forests, as “no man’s land” is a carry-over from his own geo-political environment “where a pastoralist could set up camp, in any forest, for a few weeks without causing any uproar or opposition”.
“To interpret such a temporary stay as a form of ‘land grab’ by the Fulani herdsmen is completely incorrect.
”In actual fact, neither does such temporary habitation of the forest inconvenience anyone nor does the itinerant Fulani sojourner, bother anyone about his plight in the forest characterised by life without access to electricity, pipe borne water, good roads or hospitals.
“On the contrary, Mohammed is very familiar with the Land Use Act, including the criteria for land acquisition and cannot, therefore, seek to undermine the statute which, as governor, he has sworn to uphold,” he said.
Mr Gidado said “the governor’s statement was intended to caution all stakeholders to guard against escalating the tension, just as many patriotic stakeholders, particularly from the North, have been working round the clock to avert reprisal actions that could throw the entire country into a cauldron of unimaginable proportions”.
“Rather than vilify Governor Mohammed, it is incumbent on all those criticising him to admonish those governors whose lack of restraint is responsible for the escalation of this crisis.
“Mohammed’s antecedents, as a bridge-builder, humanist and nationalist, are so well known that he will never, under any circumstances, deliberately fuel any national crisis or subvert the Constitution,” he said.
(NAN)
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday, criticised President Bola Tinubu’s “Emi Lokan” slogan ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Makinde said Nigerians do not need “turn-by-turn nepotism”, arguing that voters should be free to decide who becomes the country’s next president in 2027.
The Oyo State governor spoke during the APM’s town hall meeting in Akure, Ondo State.
Makinde asked: “How can someone say ‘Eemi lokan’ in a country like Nigeria? You were given the opportunity. If you recall the 1999 presidential election, the South-West voted massively for Baba Olu Falae, but the rest of Nigerians voted for Baba Obasanjo. So, this is not an issue that only the South-West can resolve; it is an issue we must address collectively as Nigerians.
“We do not want ‘turn-by-turn nepotism’, nor do we want a situation where people say, ‘I will vote for projects because it is my turn’. You will not finish those projects, and when it becomes someone else’s turn, they will do the same thing. We will end up with a Nigeria where we cannot get value for the resources belonging to Nigerians.
“The Reset Nigeria agenda is about building a country where infrastructure development supports economic growth and addresses the concerns of young people and women.
“Once we fix our economy, no zone will be left behind, and no demographic group will be left behind.”
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has denied saying the Federal government will introduce a fuel tax when the economy stabilises and income levels improve.
In a post on X on Tuesday, Oyedele said his remarks during an interview with ARISE News was misrepresented, insisting that a “fuel tax is not on the table.”
However, during the interview with Rotus Odiri, ARISE News Business Correspondent, on the sidelines of the 2026 International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, Oyedele said the tax would come when income levels improve enough for Nigerians to accommodate it.
He said taxes account for between 20 and 80 percent of pump prices in some countries, while many African countries impose between six and 10 different taxes on fuel products.
He said introducing fuel tax while petrol was still subsidised would have been counterproductive because government would effectively be paying the tax itself.
According to him, imposing the tax immediately after removal of petrol subsidy would be insensitive to Nigerians.
“The objective should be that instead of trying to suppress prices, which hasn’t worked for us, it hasn’t worked for any country in the world, not one. Instead of trying to suppress prices, think about how to grow income faster than prices rise,” Oyedele said.
“That’s how you bring prosperity and grow the middle class and that is exactly what we are doing as led by Mr. President himself.
“At the appropriate time, when the economy has stabilizes and income level will be able to accommodate it, those taxes will come. Not because we want to impose taxes,” he added.
In his Tuesday post, the minister reiterated that introducing a fuel tax at this time would be insensitive following removal of petrol subsidy, describing reports that government will introduce the levy when the economy stabilises as “fake news.”
A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Deputy Director of the Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Dele Momodu, has described former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the most nationally formidable and experienced among the leading contenders for the 2027 presidential election.
Momodu said Atiku’s experience at the national level distinguishes him from President Bola Tinubu and former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi.
He stated this on Wednesday during an interview on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, in Abeokuta.
“If you look at the antecedents of the three major candidates, between Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, you will see that Atiku is the most experienced. He has managed our country at the highest level,” he said.
Momodu traced Atiku’s political journey to the 1992 Social Democratic Party (SDP), presidential primary where he contested against late MKO Abiola and stepped down for him.
He said Atiku accepted the outcome without crisis even after he was not picked as Abiola’s running mate, describing it as a mark of true democratic temperament.
“He is the only one who started from around 1992, contested the SDP primary against Abiola and stepped down with uncommon equanimity. He did not make any noise,” Momodu said.
He noted that Atiku was among the founders of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and served as Vice-President from 1999 to 2007.
Comparing Atiku with Obi, Momodu argued that while Obi’s best was demonstrated in Anambra, Atiku’s was at the presidency level managing the national economy.
“Peter Obi has tried his best in Anambra, while Atiku’s best is at the level of vice president controlling the economy of Nigeria. The difference is clear. He has matured in experience and exposure,” he said.
Momodu also said President Tinubu’s experience was largely limited to Lagos.
“What I’m trying to say is that Tinubu’s experience was limited to Lagos, and that is why when he became president, he thought Nigeria was Lagos. And he has found out now that Nigeria is not Lagos,” he said.
He argued that the current economic hardship under the present administration did not show prosperity, insisting Atiku remained better positioned to lead the country.
“Well, we are yet to see that prosperity, and if yesterday would determine today and tomorrow, it is obvious that Tinubu should retire now and let someone else do it,” Momodu added.
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