Ghana's West African neighbour Nigeria has announced plans to register heardsmen in a bid to forestall their attacks on indigenes. 

The menace from nomads is on the rise across West Africa, with Ghana struggling to bring to an end spate of clashes between fulani headsmen and indigenous farmers in the Agogo community.

While Ghana's crisis has  claimed about 15 lives in from October last year, that of Nigeria has  claimed hundreds of lives across the country in recent times.

Ebonyi state government on Wednesday said it will soon start  registration of all herdsmen operating in the State from next week so as to identify genuine cattle rearers from the violent ones.

This is even as the State Executive Council has approved the sum of N29 million worth of relief materials for victims of herdsmen attack in Benue and Taraba States.

The state governor, David Umahi made the stated this on Wednesday during the first State Executive Council meeting held at the Executive Council Chambers Government House Abakaliki the capital city.

According to him, Government would convoke a meeting with Herdsmen, Traditional Rulers, Security Agencies among others to brainstorm on ways to avert any crisis that may erupt between farmers and Fulani herdsmen operating in the State.

“On Monday we would hold a meeting with herdsmen, traditional Rulers and the Security Agencies, we have to register all the herdsmen in the State  to fish out genuine ones, our people are not happy with the level of destruction of our farmlands, the governor said,

“During  the meeting we will agree on why the State Government would provide boreholes to the herdsmen for their cattle, they abandon it and resort to destruction of farmlands at Ezillo  and Izzi communities of the State”

” The cattles ate up the rice farms, we would not take laws into our hands, trouble herdsmen would be registered, we would do a serious meeting with herdsmen in the State,” the Governor reiterated.

Umahi frowned at a situation where herdsmen blocked his convoy on his way to the village stating “imagine where a Governor is traveling to his village and is being stopped by cattle, this is unacceptable,” he said

“We condemn the killings in Benue and Taraba States, we urge the Federsl Government to fish out the Killers of innocent lives, we commend President Buhari for tracking the militants that massacred the  people in River State,” he said.

By Fiifi Abdul Malik/ghanaguardian.com