According to the forum, threats such as the one made by the Miyetti Allah always come with renewed momentum from the killer-herdsmen as they continue their desperation to kill, main, displace and occupy our lands
Youths in Benue State under the umbrella of the Benue Youths Forum (BYF) have lambasted a Fulani socio-cultural group, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore over its threat to drag the state Governor, Samuel Ortom, to the International Criminal Court (ICC) of justice over the seizure of their cows and arrest of their members.
The forum stated that it was surprised at how the herders group, which claimed responsibility for several killings of Benue people over the enforcement of Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law in the state, is threatening to seek justice over crimes they committed.
Reacting to the Fulani herders’ suit threat, the BYF President, Terrence Kuanum, on Monday in a statement made available to newsmen in Makurdi, the Benue State capital, reaffirmed the warning that there was no land for open grazing in the state and warned anyone who wants to do cattle business to acquire lands for ranching.
The forum called on security agencies to rise against the killer-herders and therefore demanded the arrest and prosecution of the leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore for the attacks on Benue people.
According to the forum, threats such as the one made by the Miyetti Allah always come with renewed momentum from the killer-herdsmen as they continue their desperation to kill, main, displace and occupy our lands
The statement partly reads, “It has become imperative for us, the Benue Youth Forum, to react to recent threats by a Fulani socio-cultural group, Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore who are known to be responsible for incessant massacre of Benue people to drag Governor Samuel Ortom to the International Criminal Court of Justice at the Hague for allegedly seizing their cattle and arresting their members.
“The group which made the laughable threats in a press statement by its National Secretary, Alhassan Saleh raised lame allegations that Governor Ortom seized 25,000 of their cows and arrested 400 of their members without any cause.
“Granted that Governor Ortom had while unveiling the Benue Community Volunteer Guards, BVCGs in Makurdi, said the government had secured the conviction of over 400 Fulani herders who had besieged the state and had seized over 25,000 cows, we all know that it was done within the law.
“While we are not worried over the empty and baseless threats to drag the Governor the ICC, we are once again concerned that this group that has claimed responsibility for the massacre of Benue people and sacking of communities and creating a humanitarian crisis is reminding us that cows are more important than human lives.
“It is common knowledge that there is a law prohibiting open grazing in Benue state. When the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law of the state was enacted in 2017, the leadership of Miyetti Allah addressed a press conference and threatened to resist the legislation violently.
“The group’s National President, Abdullahi Bodejo and National Secretary, Saleh Alhassan, said they were going to mobilise Fulani herders from across West Africa to invade Benue state and ensure that the law was not enforced, as they said Benue land belonged to them.
“The bill, which was assented to by Governor Ortom in May, 2017, came into effect on the 1st of November, the same year. Immediately following the enforcement of the law, the herdsmen intensified attacks on Benue communities, killing hundreds of people, and displacing millions who are still in internally displaced persons, IDP camps.
“The height of it was the massacre of 73 people on the 31st of December, 2017 and 1st January, 2018 in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of the state.
“Barely 48 hours after the mass burial of the 73 victims of the herdsmen attacks in Benue, the National Vice President of Miyetti Allah Cattle Herders Association, Husaini Yusuf Bosso, warned that more blood will be shed in the state if the law prohibiting open grazing introduced by Governor Ortom was not completely scrapped.
“There were also several threats by a group known as Fulani Nationality Movement, FUNAM to ensure that there was no peace in Benue unless the law banning open grazing was repealed.
“We are all aware that the same Fulani Nationality Movement claimed responsibility for the attempted assassination of Governor Ortom in March 2021 and several other threats on his life by the group and Miyetti Allah.
“That they have resolved to make Benue a killing field as long as the people do not surrender their land for them to occupy is nothing new, except that little or nothing has been done by the Federal Government to tame them, despite repeated calls by Governor Ortom.
“Even as we speak, the group that has been identified as one of the most dangerous terrorist organisations in the world is still unleashing terror on the people and has never stopped even for a moment, creating a huge humanitarian crisis in the state after killing over 5,000 people, destroying property worth billions of naira and displacing about two million people from their ancestral lands.
“The Benue Youth Forum therefore wishes to tell the Miyetti Allah that they are embarking on an exercise in futility as their empty threats to seek justice at the ICC would remain what they are - futile efforts.
“We also want them to know that the crimes they have committed against humanity in Benue state and other parts of the country shall not go unpunished.
“As the governor and the entire Benue people have always reiterated, there is no land for open grazing in the state, so anyone who wants to rear cattle in the area should go through the normal procedure to acquire lands for ranching.
“The BYF also calls on security agencies to rise to the occasion as threats such as the one made by the Miyetti Allah always come with renewed momentum from the killer-herdsmen as they continue their desperation to kill, main, displace and occupy our lands.
“We demand the arrest and prosecution of the leadership of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore for the attacks on Benue people. This group has proven time and again that it is responsible for the atrocities that armed herders have committed in Benue State in the last six years. Only their prosecution and punishment can assuage the pains they have inflicted on our people.”