HERDERS have been asked to vacate forests in Taraba State in the next 30 days or be forced to do so.
The eviction order was given by the Emir of Muri Empire Abbas Tafida on Tuesday.
Tafida accused the herders of kidnapping residents for ransoms despite the hospitality shown them by the state.
He charged the leadership of Fulani herdsmen to fish out the bad eggs among them.
“Our Fulani herdsmen in the forests, you came into this state and we accepted you, why then will you be coming to towns and villages to kidnap residents, even up to the extent of raping our women?
“Because of this unending menace, every Fulani herdsman in this state have been given 30 days ultimatum to vacate the forests.
“We are tired of having sleepless nights and the hunger alone in the land is enormous and we will not allow it to continue,” he said.
Taraba State is one of the states bedevilled by the activities of banditry in the North-West part of the country.
In May, the state chapter of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) blamed Governor Darius Ishaku-led state government for the spike in insecurity in the state.
The group lamented Ishaku’s performance, especially in the areas of security, expressing sadness that the government had failed to put in place drastic measures to halt the incessant attacks on herders in the state.
In a statement by its Chairman Sahabi Mahmood Tukur, MACBAN expressed sadness that despite the several attacks on herders and their cattle, the government had not come to their aid.
According to Tukur, herders “are not being carried along by this state government,” adding that “we have never for once gotten any support from the governor since the inception of his administration. ”
He said as natives, the government should stop discriminating against herders across the state.
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