Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) have opposed the plan by the Federal Government to set up a radio station purportedly to reach out and persuade Fulani herdsmen to stop killing farmers.
The CAN spokesman, Pastor Bayo Oladeji, faulted the approach by the government to the herdsmen-farmers’ crisis, noting that setting up of a radio station could not be the solution to the challenge.
He said, “It was reported in the newspapers that the government planned to give the Miyetti Allah N100bn. The government denied it only for the Miyetti Allah to own up, saying it was approved by former President Goodluck Jonathan. Who is fooling who?
“Why didn’t they set up a radio station for farmers too? Where is the radio station for the bandits in Zamfara, or for the Niger Delta militants? No single person has been prosecuted for the killings in the North-Central. Is the allegation by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that there is a planned Fulanisation of the country not playing out now?
It also added that “Every adult in the North listens to radio, so why can’t they reach the herdsmen on the existing radio stations? Why do they need to set up a different radio station for them? They should stop fooling us.”
While the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum(SMBLF) has maintained the same position with CAN Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), led by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar lll has frown at CAN and others over their stand against the new radio station acquired by the Federal Government to reach herdsmen.
The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, in an interview with journalists on Wednesday had said that the Federal Government had acquired an Amplitude Modulation broadcast radio license for the herdsmen as part of efforts to end perennial farmers-herders’ clashes.
Adamu said, “The radio service will serve as a vehicle for social mobilization and education, in addition to interactive radio instruction methodology that will be adopted to reach the very hard-to-reach segment of our target population.
“Additionally, it will enhance our capacity to address crisis between herders and farmers with attendant consequences to loss of lives, destruction of productive assets, nomadic schools, facilities teaching and learning resources.”
Secretary-General of the JNI, Dr. Abubakar Khalid-Aliyu, also disagreed with CAN and everyone who opposed the decision by the Federal Government to acquire the license.
He therefore, wondered why Nigerians would oppose everything “positive”, noting that it would be of no benefit to Nigerians to always criticize almost everything based on ethnicity or religion.
Khalid-Aliyu added, “What is bad when the Fulani man is being educated to become well-informed members of the society? I wondered what is happening to Nigerians that whenever something positive is brought on board, it will be given miscellaneous interpretations just to show that we don’t agree.
“As far as we are concern, radio is part of the tools which can be used to enlighten the people, through the radio, education is being achieved and bringing people together is also being achieved. So, I wonder what is bad in this. It is a right step in the right direction.”
He further argued that there was nothing wrong if the government aided the Fulani race “who suffers the problem of not being well informed.”
