Ruga: Tiv leaders to sue Federal Government

 
As the controversy over the setting up of Ruga Cattle Colony in 12 states of the country to aid cattle grazing hots up, leaders of Benue State, Ontiv Professional Association, Abuja, has urged the Federal government to stay action or face legal action.
Although, the Vice President, Yemi Osibanjo has dissociated himself from the project through his Special Adviser on Media, Laolu Akande, who explained that “government will not impose on any state (use of) of its land.”

But at a media parley in Abuja, its Chairman, Engr Benjamin Nyior, who aligned with the Benue State, and maintained that anything short of their demands would mean that “Benue people are targets of annexation in their fatherland.”
He questioned the abrupt mobilisation of contractors to site when discussions were still ongoing with representatives of government.
He said: “In rising against it, we shall seek all lawful avenues of redress to achieve the wishes of the people of Benue State. Although we are aware that land could be acquired for Overriding Public Interest, RUGA settlements, to our understanding, does not qualify under the Land Use Act for this criterion.
“We are also aware that it is settled law as expressed in the case of R. Nkwocha v Governor of Anambra State by the Supreme Court of Nigeria to the effect that “individual rights to land ownership cannot be expropriated for any other individual or group of individuals.
“The people of the state have spontaneously demonstrated with peaceful protests their dissatisfaction with this project which to the least seeks to forcefully take over Tiv ancestral lands for the Fulani ethnic group and impose eventual actualisation of the takeover of the Benue Valley for the Fulani ethnic group.
“We wish to be assuaged that this decision is not contemplated by the Federal government for purpose as insinuated above and that Benue and in fact all Nigerians are proud members of project Nigeria and so will not be denied their rights to the advantage of another ethnic group in this country.”
Alternatively, Nyior suggested that money budgeted for the establishment of the project should be channeled towards resettling displaced indigenes who are still in camps.
“We affirm strongly that RUGA is not what the state needs at this point. Our people need re-settlement, restoration of their pride as members of the Nigerian project, restoration to their farms to continue to feed the nation and to live peacefully with themselves believing that their protection by the government will be guaranteed,” he added.