OKOWA CHALLENGES FEDERAL GOVT TO TELL NIGERIANS THE STEPS BEING TAKEN TO CURB THE MENACE OF HERDSMEN

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has called on the Federal Government to take strident measures to curb incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the country.

The Governor made the call at Abavo, Ika south local government area, on Saturday at the 21st Ogwa Ika and 17th Ika Ka Mma Annual Lecture Series organised by Onu Ika Nigeria.

He disclosed that his administration was doing its best to check the havoc being wrecked by Fulani herdsmen on famers through interface with critical stakeholders, but regretted that his efforts had been restrained by his limited control of the security apparatus.
The Governor decried the frequent loss of lives from herdsmen attacks on defenceless farmers and other Nigerians, and insisted that the Federal Government must curb the menace.

Governor Okowa also urged the federal government to tell Nigerians the steps it had taken to stem the ugly trend.

On irregular migration of youths seeking greener pastures in foreign countries and increasing child-trafficking cases, he charged parents and caregivers to live up to their responsibilities by openly condemning the act and restraining their children from embarking on such dangerous journeys. 

Okowa condemned the situation where parents mounted undue pressure on their children and wards to embark on illegal trips to Europe through the desert, saying that the lives of many promising Nigerians had been lost in the process. 
He commended Onu Ika for organising an annual essay competition for secondary schools in Ika land, and urged the people to encourage government to site development projects through the donation of land.

Earlier in an address,  the Head, Collective Leadership, Onu Ika Nigeria, Mr Daniel Usifor, said for three years running, Onu Ika had consistently forewarned of the devastating influx of Fulani herdsmen to Ika communities.

He urged the government to take decisive actions to check the menace of herdsmen and thanked the Governor for his administration’s commitment to the development of the state.