JULIANA FRANCIS reports on how efforts of the Governor Yahaya Bello-led administration have helped resolved incessant farmers, herders’ clashes in Kogi State
Insecurity in Nigeria has become a hydra headed monster, defying solutions. At least 1, 603 Nigerians, inclusive of women and children were killed within the first quarter of 2021, stated Global Rights Nigeria.
Security challenges have also caused millions of Nigerian women and children to become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), living in their country like refugees.
According to security experts, major security issues dangling over Nigeria are Boko Haram, herders, farmers’ clashes, banditry and kidnapping, separatist insurgency and oil militants.
However, the farmers, herders’ clashes are the singular, most worrisome and persistent challenges to most state governors in Nigeria. These clashes have led to the emergence of secessionists groups, with many of such clashes grounding the socio-economic life of the states.
While some governors are still running from pillar to post, brainstorming on how to check this rampaging monster, the governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, revealed that he had already checkmated such clashes in his state, leading to a peaceful coexistence between farmers and herders.
Bello revealed how he was able to achieve this feat at the First Annual Governor Yahaya Bello (GYB) seminar for Nigeria’s political and crime reporters, which held at Transcorp Hotel, Abuja, between July 9 and 10.
The theme of the seminar: “Reporting Nigeria for Nigeria,” was aimed at empowering journalists with a deeper knowledge of the peculiarities of Nigeria as a nation, with a view to delivering authoritative reports on political and security issues, without harming the essence of Nigeria’s unity.
These objectives naturally became the focal points of several discussants at the event. The governor, speaking on “Perspectives on leadership and aspiration,” revealed that when he took over the mantle of leadership in Kogi State, he was confronted with daunting challenges, among which was escalating cases of farmers, herders; clashes.
His words: “The herders are just poor people, struggling to get food to eat and survive. But they are now being targeted and killed for nothing. We needed to do something about these clashes.
So, we said, any herder who takes his cattle into a farm or destroys such a farm would be made to pay for it. Also, any farmer, who attacks a herder or kills a cow, would also be made to pay for it. Since we made that pronouncement, there is peace.
The clashes have been curtailed.” Before the governor fashioned this peace move, the state from January 1, 2015 and June 2016, had recorded 29 clashes between farmers and herders.
In order to foster further peace, the Bello-led administration also tackled low level of collaboration and synergy among security forces, ensured that the state has a well structured intelligence gathering and cultivated team work with local vigilante groups.
The Kogi State Security Adviser, Navy Commander Jerry Omodara (rtd), who spoke on “Citizens’ participation and efficient security architecture:
What we did differently,’ used a multimedia approach to lay out what existed before the advent of the Bello’s administration and now. Omodara used statistics to buttress the point that the state was seriously insecure before the governor took over the seat of power in the state.
According to him, the administration had to get the input of the citizens in drafting solutions to the menace of kidnapping, armed robbery, communal clashes, amongst other insecurity. He mentioned that local hunters and youths were drafted into the security architecture to ensure success.
His words: “Local vigilante groups were recruited into the Kogi State Vigilante Service. It currently has up to 3500 members. There were 16 bank robberies between 2011 and 2015. But since our governor took over, only two bank robberies have been recorded in the state in five years.”
Omodara noted that the government strongly believed in involving people, in order to truly provide security for them. He also said that there were kidnap cases in the state from January 1, 2015 to June, but by July 2016, kidnapping dropped sharply, with only a few isolated cases.
He mentioned that the state accepted the 441 constabulary police deployed in Kogi State by the Federal Government and the state had gone further to provide 200 vehicles to security agencies.
“Federal Government can’t do it alone. Aside from providing those vehicles to security forces, we renew them every yearly and provide allowances to federal security forces. Kogi State is also building a Forward Operating Base for the Nigerian Army at the cost of N300 million,” revealed Omodara, adding: “The state government has also been using lawful means to demolish the property of kidnappers. The government is also using technology to fight crime.
This includes Artificial Intelligence. It will train youths at the state-owned university of science and technology in security management. It plans to employ youths into the security system after their training by the technology university. Kogi State has the best security intercept in Nigeria.”
The retired naval officer, while stating that Kogi State has entered into a partnership with two companies in Benue and Oyo states to bring in and operate drones, stressed that issues of security and politics should never be joined. This was even as he blamed politicians for distorting security issues.
The Chief of Staff to the Governor, Abdulkareem Moh’d Jamiu, x-raying the topic: “Youth participation in governance: Effect on crime rate,” said Nigeria has the third largest youth population in the world and a median age of 18 years.
He said that a cursory overview of the median age of Nigeria’s leaders showed that the nation’s political echelons are dominated by persons older than the age of 50.
According to him, when it comes to the issue of leadership, young Nigerians were often viewed as inexperienced enough to be trusted with the affairs of the state.
Thus, youths were left out of major decision making and policy formulation processes, which ought to serve their interest. Jamiu argued that the average Nigerian youth was equipped with the skills and technical knowhow to make a difference in Nigeria’s governance architecture, but were hardly ever given the opportunity to put these skills to work in mainstream development and governance.
He noted that the youths were confronted with micro and macro challenges, which acted as stumbling blocks to becoming a part of the governance process.
He further argued: “Beyond the socio-economic problems that these challenges portend, the perception of alienation and marginalization of youth has led to problems of insurgency, banditry and insecurity in certain regions of the country.
It is evidenced by the daily reports from security agencies and the media that the greatest threat to Nigeria’s nascent democracy is the prevailing insecurity of lives and properties of the people.
The fundamental obligation of any democratic society is to ensure the security of lives and properties of the citizenry.”
He also noted that since the 1960’s Nigeria has had its fair share of threats to its democratic process through militia groups, movements for the actualization of sovereign states, uprisings and violent extremism hinged on religious radicalism, kidnappings, vandalism, insurgency, violent groups and organized criminal syndicates.
“In all of this, youths have been used as willing tools and being at the forefront of rebellion and the perpetuation of these crimes.
The role of the youth in effective implementation of security and social development intervention in Nigeria is one that cannot be overemphasized. Youths can be positive agents of change when they are actively engaged in the decisions that affect their social and economic wellbeing.
Engaging youth in decision making is essential to the overall development of our nation,” Jamiu said. He stressed that early action to ensure fair representation of youth in the process of governance builds resilience and social cohesion and also serves as a medium for curbing crime and conflict prevention for vulnerable and at risk youths.
He stated that if youths were recognised and assured of a seat at the table of governance, then it would motivate other young Nigerians and those in the African continent to deploy their energy and skills towards nation building.
He said that it was not enough to keep mouthing that the future belonged to the youth without accompanying it with action.
Citing the governor as someone who has walked the talk, Jamiu said: “Under the administration of Alhaji Yahaya Bello, he has ensured adequate representation of youth in all stratums of government, full gender affirmation and the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the process of governance.
Governor Yahaya Bello’s youth driven administration has succeeded in providing adequate security in the state by enhancing the quality of the lives of the citizens of Kogi State through his unrelenting fight against insecurity.
His efforts against insecurity have brought the crime rate in the state to its barest minimum, making Kogi State a safe haven for settlers, investors and a connecting bridge between the north and southern regions of our great nation, Nigeria.”
He enthused that youths in Kogi State are now decision makers, rather than being continually used as political thugs by some disgruntled elements in the state.
He added: “Kogi State is unarguably the safest state in Nigeria today despite having borders with 10 states, including the Federal Capital Territory. It is imperative to note that power is not given, it is taken.
Young people must determine their own destinies and chart a new course for the desired future that they want.
As 2023 approaches, young people must start asking questions as regards what the future holds for them. They must demand to be participants in the governance process of Nigeria.”
According to security stakeholders, if measures put in place by governors and the Federal Government must remain intact, then issues of unemployment, poverty of opportunities, weak government policies, corruption, political marginalization and infiltration of arms and ammunition coming into Nigeria through porous borders should be checked.
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