Taraba anti grazing law not against any religion, tribe – Gov Ishaku

Taraba State Governor, Mr. Darius Ishaku, has said the state anti-open grazing law is not targeted at any religious group or tribe.

In a statement issued in Jalingo by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs, Hon. Emmanuel Bello,  the governor said that the law was colour blind as it was not enacted to punish any tribe or religion.



The implementation of the Taraba State Anti Open Grazing and Ranches Establishment Law which was enacted in June,  2017, is expected to commence on the 24th of this month at the expiration of the six months grace period.

Ishaku had during the signing of the law on June 24, 2017 given a six-months grace period and constituted farmers and grazers sensitisation committees on the importance of the law.

He noted that cow ownership in Taraba State was not the exclusive preserve of any religion, tribe or group, adding that the law was to among other things, change the mode of production of cattle for better yield.

“This is a step towards modernisation of cattle rearing and it is keeping with the best tradition of cow production all over the world. Agriculture is undergoing a revolution. Antiquated means of production is giving way to better methods with the  use of tractors and better seedlings among other things. 

“This can happen to cattle rearing too. The ancient method of nomadic voyages has failed to give better milk production or even beef. Cows are leaner and less productive when made to go through the rigours of long distant treks. Elsewhere, ranching has since become the best form of attending to the need of cattle in the world.

“Even here in Nigeria,  top cow owners have seen the wisdom in ranching. In Taraba,  cow owners on the Mambilla have been doing a form of ranching dating into the past. It’s nothing new to us and I enjoined all to key into it, ” part of the statement read.

According to the statement, the law did not come about arbitrarily, but passed through public hearings where views, concerns and inputs of stakeholders were collated, noting that a lot had been done in putting into cognisance all the observations of stakeholders.