The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) has responded to allegations by Prophet Isa El-Buba, who accused Fulani herders of being behind the incessant attacks and insecurity in the state.
The Plateau State-based cleric, El-Buba, who is the founder and
President of EL-Buba Outreach Ministries International, in a recent sermon, said that more than 80 percent of genocidal attacks carried out in the state were being perpetrated by Fulani militias who are members of the Miyetti Allah Association.
The cleric also stated that the long-held notion that the attacks are often farmer-herder clashes should be discarded as they are pure genocide, terrorism, and attempts at land-grabbing.
He further said if the Miyetti Allah association should call the herders to order, the attacks will stop.
The National President of MACBAN, Baba Othman-Ngelzarma, on Saturday, countered the cleric, saying that Fulani pastoralists are not criminals but victims of banditry and insecurity in the state and the country in general.
Othman-Ngelzarma stated that contrary to what many Nigerians are made to believe, the Fulani herders are made to bear the brunt of such attacks as they are profiled by both natives and security operatives and suffer from attacks unleashed on them.
The MACBAN President stressed that the situation is so terrible that every bandit attack in the state is attributed to the Fulani herders, who are being overrepresented in violent conflicts, making them easy targets and are killed on daily basis. At the same time, their cattle are rustled by their attackers.
He advised El-Buba and the Plateau people against seeing all Fulani pastoralists as criminals, noting that they remain the most vulnerable group because they live in forests with their families and depend solely on cattle for survival, making them easy targets for bandits, rustlers, and kidnappers.
He warned that until justice is done to the affected herders, there will never be a solution for peace in the state.
