TARABA State will begin the implementation of its anti-grazing law beginning from January next year, Governor Darius Isiaku has disclosed.
Speaking with State House correspondents after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Monday, he said farmers and herdsmen were already being sensitized to see the necessity for the law.
He expressed delight that it was already being accepted as something that had been done in good faith.
The governor was also happy that the state has remained relatively calm as the government worked to enhance its security.
He said: “The state is quiet, calm. Our own anti-grazing law will come into effect next year January.
“Two panels were set up to sensitize the farmers and the herdsmen so that they both understand the benefits of the anti-grazing bill because I still believe for the herdsmen socially and economically, that is the best thing that will ever happen to them if we can consolidate on that.
“The awareness is improving each day and people are beginning to know that these laws are done in good faith and are done to secure lives and properties of the people. We are sure that there will be not much hindrance to its implementation.”
Isiaku said he was at the presidential villa to seek President Buhari’s security assistance for Taraba state following the withdrawal of soldiers that had been deployed there.
He added: “You know security is the sole prerogative of Mr. President, it is his assignment. We state governments rely on the federal government for the soldiers, the police and all the security agencies and therefore you need the presidential directives to be able to enhance the security of the states, particularly my state where some of the soldiers have been withdrawn to other areas in the country of which we will need them if possible to come back so that we will feel more secure and continue to live in peace.”
The governor revealed that he also briefed the president on efforts his government was making to enhance peace as well as the successes the efforts have yielded.
He said he thanked the president for his recent award of the Mambilla Hydro Power Project located in the state.
While noting that the project was the biggest of its kind in Nigeria, Governor Isiaku stated that its revitalization after 30 years in the doldrums was a major feat for the present administration.
According to him, “It has stayed over 30 years on the drawing board until his administration. So that is a very big feat and I thought I should come and thank him and seek his audience for when next I will come with Taraba people to thank him.
“It is a very good project for the country as a whole. 3,050 megawatts, for those of us who know what a megawatt is, it can do a lot in developing Nigeria.”
He spoke of efforts in other areas of development in the state, saying: “I’m sure you are aware of our popular greenhouse. Last year, we had 16,000 in the rice farm. We want to quadruple that by this year and therefore we need assistance particularly to build channels where we can distribute water because the dry season farming is more popular than the rainy season. They harvest rice four times more and we want to enhance that.
“We have also gone into other crops now, cocoa, beniseed and soya beans, all these we are recording huge successes in the state.
“We have also recorded huge success in education and we have moved hitherto from less than 28 percent on WAEC this year for the first time we had 67.3 percent in WAEC and as at last month when they graded the whole country, we were number 8th in the whole country and number one in the northern states.
“We have really pushed education very high and we intend to push it to an enviable height.”