A youth group under the Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL), South-East geopolitical zone, has expressed its support for the call by Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State for farmers to be constitutionally empowered to carry arms to defend themselves against killer Fulani terrorists parading as herdsmen and killing innocent Nigerians.
The group, in a statement issued in Owerri on Monday, and jointly endorsed by the President-General, Goodluck Ibem, and Secretary-General, Kanic Igwe, said that since the Federal Government had failed woefully to protect the people against killer Fulani herdsmen carrying AK-47 rifles, farmers who are the primary targets of the killer Fulani herdsmen should be granted the rights to carry AK-47 rifles.
They described it as regrettable, that the attackers would wield AK-47 rifles in broad daylight without any arrest or prosecution from law enforcement agents.
“AK-47 is an acceptable weapon for personal defense since the Fulani herdsmen have been allowed to carry rifles without any interference from the federal government,” the group submitted.
The youth group insisted that other Nigerians, most especially farmers, should be given the approval to carry the same AK-47 rifles as Fulani herdsmen.
The group called on the Federal House of Representatives and the Senate to urgently pass a law permitting farmers in areas that are always attacked by Fulani herdsmen to carry AK-47 rifles to defend themselves.
“It’s not fair to carry cutlasses or dane guns to face a man with AK-47 rifles,” COSEYL insisted.
Describing the law as pertinent as it would protect farmers who are killed daily by the murderous Fulani herdsmen, the youth body raised the alarm that many Nigerians would die as a result of hunger if nothing was done urgently to guarantee the safety of farmers who under the sun and rain work so that Nigerians would have food to eat.
The body also said that the prices of food would continue to rise above the reach of the ordinary Nigerians who make less income to cater for their families, adding that the increase would have a retrospective effect as prices of other essential goods would skyrocket above the reach of the common man.
The leadership of the group pointed out that the call by Governor Ortom for every farmer to be constitutionally empowered by law to carry AK-47 rifles to defend themselves was a patriotic call.
The body commended Governor Ortom for his unwavering support and defence of his people at all times.
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