By Admin – July 6, 2019
President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday told herdsmen returning to the North from the South to respect their host communities.
This came as Buhari ordered increased security presence in Katsina State following fresh violence involving herdsmen and farmers in his home state, resulting in loss of lives and valuables.
A State House statement by Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Garba Shehu, said the President “warned herdsmen and communities to stop taking the law into their own hands by resorting to violence at every provocation”.
Buhari also directed that “herdsmen returning from the South due to the rainy season must respect the boundaries of farmers and villagers, while the communities must refrain from attacking herdsmen.”
Buhari condoled with the families of the victims, “assuring the state that the security structure would be further strengthened to avoid unnecessary violence between herdsmen and communities.”
He also directed the “prosecution of all those involved in the conflict”.
In other isolated incidents, bandits also attacked some villages on Wednesday in Katsina State.
At least, 18 persons were reportedly killed in the attacks by bandits in Kankara and Danmusa local government areas of the state.
Meanwhile, Buhari will depart Abuja today for Niamey, Niger Republic.
His mission is to attend the African Union Summit scheduled to hold on July 7, according to the Presidency.
The Presidency said, “President Buhari will sign the AfCFTA Agreement on the margins of the AU meeting in Niamey.”
The President while accepting the report on the AfCFTA on Jun 27, said, ‘’For AfCFTA to succeed, we must develop policies that promote African production, among other benefits.
“Africa, therefore, needs not only a trade policy but also a continental manufacturing agenda. Our vision for intra-African trade is for the free movement of ‘made in Africa goods.’ That is, goods and services made locally with dominant African content in terms of raw materials and value addition.’’
The Punch