RUGA to gulp N2.2bn in 2019 – Enang – TheNigerialawyer

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National
Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang at the weekend called
on states in the southern part of the country to support the
implementation of the proposed RUGA cattle settlement programme by
making land available.

According to him, N2.258 billion was provided for its
implementation in the 2019 budget.

He spoke in Abuja while hosting students of Law School Abuja
from Akwa Ibom State.

He explained the word – RUGA is not derived from Hausa or
Fulani, but an acronym for Rural Grazing Area (RUGA) initiated in
1956 during the colonial era.

He also assured it was not intended to Islamise, Fulanise or
colonise anybody.

He said that the budgetary provision is in volume 1 under the
Ministry of Agricultural and Rural development item number ERGP
5208 where the sum of N2.258bn was provided and budgeted for the
grazing programme.

He said that National Assembly members are not against the Ruga
programme because they are aware of it and has been approving funds
for its implementation.

Besides the over N2 billion appropriated for the Ruga, he said
that there were also budgeted sum of N300 million for water
sanitation, N400 million development for sweet potatoes, 350
million for ginger development amongst several other
provisions.

The RUGA policy, he said, is just one component of the budget
under the ministry of agriculture.

He added that the objective of the budget for RUGA is to promote
cattle breeding and meet production.

The RUGA programme, he said,is an integrated farm system which
has schools, good road, tractors and mechanisatiom, agricultural
integration with a provision for primary healthcare, vetinery,
schools.

Apart from the budgeted sum for RUGA in the 2019 budget, there
is another sum provided for the emergency Ruga implementation
programme approved in May by the National Economic Council for
states that will make land available.

Enang said that since 1999 he has been hosting students of Law
School from Akwa Ibom State but this was specifically to enlighten
them on the objective of RUGA programme against the ongoing
misconceptions.

He asked the law students one after the other what they know
about RUGA and each and everyone gave his view on the issue.

Some said they have not known much about the real issue because
government was yet to enlighten them on it.

He went on: “RUGA is not a plan to seize land from people
neither and it’s not meant to fulanize or colonize anybody.

”The Programme is meant to address the issue of cattle roaming
and destruction of farmland which would put an end to the
herders/farmers crisis, ” Enang explained.

According to him, people in the south have farm settlements and
plantations that can be equated to Ruga.

”The idea of RUGA graduated in 1978 into the Land Use Act which
states that a portion of land has to be reserved for grazing to
avoid the destruction of farm produce by cattle.

”Over time cattle roamed and destroyed farms hence the
introduction of the policy to address the issue, ” he said

He noted that in places like the north, earth dams were
constructed to cater for cattle.

He expressed shocks over the inability of some states governors
to understand the policy.

One of the first RUGA programmes, he said, is Obudu Cattle Ranch
and the Yankari Games Reserve.

Stressing that the Federal Government is not trying to takeover
anybody’s land for Ruga , he said that land under the land use act
is in the hands of state government.

He faulted the claims by some governors that it was meant to
Fulanize peole.

He said that the emergency RUGA programme did not involve any
state in the South East, South West and the South South because the
areas that had the problems were about 10 states mainly North
Central, and few states in North West and North East.

Responding to questions from the law students he said in most
places wealth is measured by the number of cattle one has.

Senator Enang said that people in the southern part of the
country preferred the local cow because it’s more nutritious than
the ones brought from the north.

He urged the states in the south to open up their lands for
RUGA.

He said those in the habit of abusing their leaders are not well
informed on the policy adding that their representatives in the
national assembly unanimously passed the budget for RUGA and the
ministers from all the states of the federation also approved the
RUGA at NEC.

He said that the president is very sensitive to the plight of
Nigerian hence the call for the suspension of the RUGA policy.

He also appealed to all Nigerians to stop politicizing the
implementation of the ruga policy.

He said that if lawyers understand, the world will
understand.

The students appreciated the senator appealing to government to
increase its public enlightenment programme to enable the citizens
understand better its policies and programmes to avoid rancor.

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VIDEO: DSS Speaks on Detention of Sowore over
Revolution-Now Protest
Video by PRNigeria: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mb1hvhf0TI^[1]

The Department of Security Services (DSS) has disclosed that Mr.
Omoyele Sowore, the Publisher of Sahara Reporters and founder of
the African Action Congress (AAC), was arrested by security
operatives and is in their custody for now.

The DSS Spokesperson Peter Afunaya claimed that Sowore crossed
the red line after he called for a revolution over alleged bad
governance, insecurity and corruption, among other national
issues.

Meanwhile, PRNigeria gathered that the security agencies in
Nigeria were concerned about foreign interest in the agitation for
the planned Revolution Now Protest.

The DSS at a media briefing in Abuja maintained that the
proposed revolution march instigated by former Presidential
Candidate of AAC will threaten public safety, peaceful co-existence
and social harmony.

Hence, the DSS, as a responsible security agency, will not just
sit idly and watch any individual, group and their cohorts rise and
threaten the peace, unity and constitutionalism of the country.

Afunaya who described revolution as insurgency, revolt,
insurrection and forceful takeover of government, added that
Nigeria is not a Banana Republic and cannot be made one by the
likes of Mr. Sowore.

He emphasized that DSS will not allow self-centred and
violence-inclined persons to take law into their own hands.

“Though there is apprehension and anxiety among citizens
already, we wish to assure friends of Nigeria, and other
law-abiding citizens, that there will be no revolution of any kind
come Monday, August 5, 2019.

“A democratically elected government is in charge, and we cannot
allow any person or group to foment chaos or fan the ember of
revolution,” he said.

Mr. Omoyele Sowore, was the presidential candidate of the
African Action Congress (AAC)in the 2019 general election.

By PRNigeria