We will not surrender to fulani herdsmen

MAKURDI—Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue
State, has declared that his administration will
not surrender the state to the invading Fulani

herdsmen, following unending attacks on Benue
communities by herdsmen.
The Governor who lamented that the activities of
the herdsmen were hindering farming in the state
said the government would not give out its land
to herdsmen for open grazing.
Ortom who spoke in Makurdi, at the end of the
Town Hall Meeting he held with stakeholders in
the three senatorial zones of the state, said the
government would continue to support those who
were prepared to ranch their cattle in the state.
He said the decision of the state government to
enact a law to prohibit open grazing of cattle
was borne out of the commitment of his
administration to end frequent invasion of the
state by herdsmen.
Governor Ortom said agriculture remained the
biggest industry in the state, noting that available
land in the state could not accommodate farming
and cattle grazing at the same time.
He regretted the lives being lost in several Benue
communities due to the activities of herdsmen,
stressing that the administration was working
round the clock to ensure that peace reigned
across the state.
Governor Ortom said, “I have made it clear that
we will not surrender Benue to herdsmen. We
are saying that we do not have land for grazing.
Though we are ready to support those that are
prepared to ranch their cows but for those
involved in open grazing should find other states
because with the new law that would soon come
into effect, that practice will not be acceptable
in Benue State.”