Lalong accuses Jang of fueling anti-grazing reserves protests

....Receives N5b FG bailout

 

Plateau State governor, Solomon Lalong, has ac­cused his immediate pre­decessor, Jonah Jang of sponsor­ing street protests in the state against a non-existing plan to establish grazing reserves.

He said a senator from Pla­teau State, whom he didn’t name, was also part of the plot to desta­bilise the state under the guise of demonstrations against grazing reserves.

Lalong made the accusation at the State House, Abuja short­ly after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari to thank him for approving the N5 bil­lion balance of financial bailout due to Plateau State.

The governor said the anti-grazing reserves protests were futile because the relevant stake­holders like youth groups, tradi­tional rulers and religious lead­ers, had already agreed on the establishment of cattle ranches instead.

The ranches would be fund­ed by the state and federal gov­ernments, and would be open to everyone who intends to rear cattle, not just for Fulanis alone, Lalong explained.

His words: “that protest is just by a few ethnic groups. We have done a lot of consultations - from traditional rulers, religious leaders to youth organisations - they all accepted that we should adopt ranching in Plateau State.

“What they are protesting is grazing reserve but we are not talking about grazing reserves, what we are talking about is ranches.

“This is the Presidency; let me say it and am going to pub­lish it - the man who introduced and is causing that confusion is Jonah Jang, who incidentally was the one who introduced grazing reserves on the Plateau with a ga­zette in 2009. That is the gazette I am going to publish.

“If you said you had to bring peace in Plateau State, and you had to introduce grazing re­serves and grazing routes, why is he turning round again and instigating people against what is being done?”- culled from The Authority