Miyetti Allah, the umbrella body of herdsmen in Nigeria has said that Fulani tribe owns the country and must continue ruling it till eternity.
The National President of the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, Bello Bodejo, stated this in an interview with Sun Newspapers. Mr Bodejo also said members of his organisation does not need anybody’s approval to reside anywhere in Nigeria.
He said herdsmen prefers to live in the bush because that is the only comfortable place they can stay with their animals.
“It is because of their activities; you can’t carry cows to enter a secretariat; you can’t carry cattle to come and live together with people,” Mr Bodejo told the national daily while canvassing for traditional rulers to appoint a Fulani man who will join his cabinet to help fish out the bad ones causing troubles.
“Those areas the Fulani live, the traditional ruler should make a Fulani chief and bring him into his cabinet, for peaceful coexistence, it is a very simple matter.
“You should know that the Fulani have a right to go and settle anywhere they like, it is in the constitution and you shouldn’t break any law. If Fulani herdsmen go into any bush and settle there, what is their offence?
“If as they claimed that their cattle were destroying crops, what is the work of the commissioner of police, he should go and arrest them and charge them to court.
“It is only Fulani that can go and stay inside any bush they like. They have right to go and settle in any bush in this country without asking anybody for permission. It is not against the law in this country. Who would they go to take permission from, is it the animals in the bush?
“I don’t see any place where people will try and drive away the Fulani; they have right in this country. They produced Nigeria. They produced the first prime minister. If they produced the first president, another president, another president and so on, are they not the owner of the country? Fulani are ruling Nigeria and they must continue to rule the country forever. That is the truth.”
He also said despite being hated by Northerners, Jonathan tackled Almajirai system, which is becoming a problem in the North, more than anyone else.
“That is why I remember former President Jonathan; he is not a Muslim, but he went and built places for these Almajirai in different states. No matter how you hate the former president, you must remember, he tackled the Almajiri issue far more than some people in the North, and I will not mention names. The Almajirai are Nigerians, they are not from Niger or any other country, and it is a culture in the North,” he added.
President Muhammadu Buhari is a Northern Fulani whose tenure is expected to wind down in 2023 but individuals including those of Fulani extraction who consider themselves influential are insisting that power must remain in the region and will not shift to the south.
