Open Grazing: Benue govt arrests six Fulani herdsmen, impounds 376 cows

Benson Abounu, the deputy Governor of Benue State has announced that over 376 cows have been seized for contravening the state anti-open grazing law.

Abounu told newsmen that the livestock guards apprehended the cows between January, 23 and 26, 2021, at Kasima in Guma Local Government Area of the state.

While announcing that six herdsmen have also been arrested and handed over to police, the Deputy Governor said that there is an influx of herdsmen on the bank of River Benue in Agatu and Gwer West axis of the state.

Abounu said Security Council members who brainstormed on the presence of Bokoharam terror movement as declared by the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, swung into action and unmasked the massive deployment of herdsmen who he said were armed to the teeth.

According to him: “While we were still investigating the declaration made by Nasarawa State Governor of the presence of Boko Haram at Benue/Nasarawa border, we noticed massive deployment of herdsmen on the brink of River Benue.

“We also observed that a good number of these people are heavily armed, many of them with AK 47 riffle. We have been able to apprehend a good number of them in a village called Kasima in Guma Local Government Area.

“On January, 23, 156 cows belonging to these herdsmen were apprehended, and on the 26 of this month, another 220 cows were apprehended from the same vicinity.

“It was observed that the herdsmen were not ordinary herdsmen because they were heavily armed.”

Abounu who said that the anti-open grazing law has come to stay insisted that there is no way the state would abrogate the law.

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