As the outburst of Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, against the killer herdsmen over attack and killings in the state, continue to elicit reactions across the country, the governor has declared that has nothing against the Fulani people or any other tribe in the country.
Fayose, who also said that he was not an ethnic jingoist who was out to cause confusion in the country, added that his call to the Federal Government to arrest the rising tide of Fulani herdsmen attack on communities across the country was borne out of the need for national cohesion, unity and peace.
He stated this in Lagos on Wednesday while attending the funeral ceremony of Mama Violet Oluremilekun Philips-George, the mother of a stalwart of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Chief Bode George.
In a statement by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi, the governor said “I have nothing against the Fulani people or any other group in the country. My call for the Federal Government to put a check to the excesses of the Fulani herdsmen is for national unity, peace and harmony.
“The issue of incessant attacks on communities across the country by the herdsmen is a time bomb and it should not be allowed to get out of hand. The earlier will stop the menace the better for us as a nation. This has nothing to do with politics or where one comes from in the country. Who knows who the next victim could be.
“The attack is spreading across the country and I call on other state governors as well as political, religious and community leaders across the country to see the issue as a national one that we all must address.
“Like I have said earlier, the solution is that those rearing cows should have ranches to keep them. In advanced nations, they engage in animal husbandry too and they don’t allow their animals to just roam about,” he said.
Fayose, who sympathized with Chief George on the death of his mother, noted that the deceased lived a fulfilled life.
In his sermon, Most. Revd Luke Odubanjo, the Archbishop of Lagos, Methodist Church Nigeria, also called on the FG not to toy with the issue of attacks by Fulani cattle rearers in some parts of the country.
The cleric noted that the issue could pose another security challenge for the country like the Boko Haram insurgency.
He also admonished Christians to always bear it in mind that they would give account of their deeds on earth before their creator.
