News
‘N179bn Cattle Ranches In States, Threat To Peace’
The Federal Government’s decision to create ranches in some states has triggered serious confusion among the state governments, herdsmen and farmers, investigations have shown.
Our correspondents, who spoke with governments, farmers and herders in the affected states, report that though several states rejected the plan, some were awaiting further details, while the rest embraced the project for political reasons.
The development has also pitched the herdsmen and the farmers associations against each other.
The Federal Government, last week, unveiled the plan, expected to cost N179billion over a 10-year period, to improve livestock production in the country and put an end to herders/farmers crisis.
Adamawa, Benue, Ebonyi, Edo, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Oyo, Plateau, Taraba and Zamfara states would receive interventions in form of ranches in the pilot phase.
In Ebonyi State, Governor David Umahi vowed to resist any attempt to convert land in the state into a cattle ranch by the Federal Government.
Umahi, who was the chairman of the mediation committee on the farmers/herders clashes, said his panel merely recommended that state governments, willing to embrace the project, were free to do so, through the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme.
He said, “Federal Government has not taken any land from anywhere in the country. No state government has been forced to give any land for ranches. There is no land for ranching in Ebonyi State.”
The Benue State Government and the leadership of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) have also disagreed over the issue.
While the state government rejected the planned cattle ranches, the herders group said the state government’s resistance might create more problems.
The Miyetti Allah vowed to continue to oppose the state government’s anti-open grazing law, a situation that would lead to further clashes.
The state Governor, Samuel Ortom, who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Terver Akase, explained that Sections 5 and 8 of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranching Establishment Law of the state had already mapped out procedure for acquiring land for ranches.
According to Akase, the Benue State Government has not repealed the existing anti-open grazing law.
He wondered why the same government would begin to donate land for people to establish ranches.
But the National Coordinator of MACBAN, Mr. Garus Gololo, said his group was in full support of the Federal Government’s proposal to establish ranches in 10 states, including Benue.
Gololo said, “If the Federal Government wants to establish ranches, they are free to do so anywhere in the country but there must be schools, veterinary hospitals and other social amenities as well as shelters where the cows can stay.
“Benue State said it had rejected the Federal Government plan; the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association has also rejected the Benue anti-opening grazing law too.”
The Edo State Government had yet to take any action on the national ranching project as it had not been discussed at the State Executive Council meeting.
The Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Monday Osaigbovo, who spoke to one of our correspondents on the telephone, said the state would support the project only “if it is going to be done as it is being done abroad.”
The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has, however, advised Governor Godwin Obaseki not to cede any land in the state to the Federal Government to create ranches.
The party’s Chairman in the state, Chief Dan Orbih, said the national livestock transformation plan was a subtle way of dispossessing farmers and other property owners of their land.
He said, “Edo people say no to cattle colony. Edo PDP openly rejects the new national policy on ranching.
“It is an attempt to grab our land. No Edo community to date has agreed to give a portion of its land for the purpose of establishing a cattle colony; we say no to the new national policy by President Muhammadu Buhari.”
The Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura, has approved seven grazing reserves in the Awe, Keana, Doma, Assakio, Konva, Gtata and Kurudu local government areas of the state for the take-off of the programme.
The Taraba State Government and the leadership of MACBAN have expressed their support for the project, stressing that the project would solve the herders/farmers’ clashes.
In separate interviews with one of our correspondents in Jalingo, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Bala Dan Abu, and the North-East Zonal Chairman of MACBAN, Mr. Mafindi Danburam, commended the development.
The governments of Plateau and Adamawa said they had embraced the project.
The Zamfara State Commissioner for Agriculture, Lawal Jangebe, told newsmen that the Federal Government had yet to discuss the project with the state government.
The Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development, Oyewole Oyewumi, also said the state would provide land for the project in the northern part of the state and that it could be in lease form or the state contribution to the scheme.
The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.
This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.
The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.
Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.
The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.
From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.
From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.
Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.
From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.
The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.
The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.
Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.
He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.
This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.
The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.
Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.
He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.
The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.
Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.
Chinedu Wosu
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