Senate passes bill to regulate cattle ranching, establishes national commission

Following a heated debate, the Nigerian Senate passed a bill to regulate cattle rearing and ranching in Nigeria.

Persecondnews reports that Sen.
Titus Tartenger Zam, who represents Benue Northwest, sponsored the bill.

Zam said the bill aims to establish a commission to oversee, regulate, and conserve ranches nationwide.

He said: “The proposed National Animal Husbandry and Ranches Commission is for the management, preservation, and control of ranches throughout Nigeria.”

Senators Danjuma Goje of Gombe and Adamu Aliero of Kebbi, both former governors, fiercely opposed the bill, arguing that since cattle rearing and ranching are primarily practices in the North, any legislation should benefit the entire country, not just a particular region.

Goje specifically maintained that cattle routes begin from the far north and end in Lokoja, as “the route does not extend to the south.”

In his contribution, Sen. Hussein Babangida Uba, representing Jigawa North-West, called for extra caution in passing the bill, given its trail of controversies in the past.

Supporters of the bill argued that passing it immediately was necessary because the proposed commission would resolve the ongoing farmers-herders conflict.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio called for a voice vote that resulted in the bill’s approval.

The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Judiciary, and Legal Matters for review and discussion, and report back to the House within four weeks.