Inside Nigeria
Malami Under Fire as Omokri Says If North Can Ban Beer, Pig Farming, South Can Ban Open Grazing
A former presidential aide, Reno Omokri has responded to Abubakar Malami’s statement on ban on open grazing in the South angling that the same right northern states have to ban the selling of alcoholic drinks is the same right southern states have to ban open grazing of cattle.
Omokri was reacting to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami’s statement that Southern Governors were wrong to have moved to ban open grazing as part of their resolutions from their meeting last Tuesday.
Malami described the move as unconstitutional, saying the southern governors saying they will ban open grazing in their states is like Northern governors saying they want to ban the selling of spare parts in the North.
Omokri, however, lambasted Malami and the President Muhammadu Buhari government, saying the comments of the AGF exposed the government as being in support of the atrocities caused by nomadic herdsmen all along.
“When Hisbah demolishes the businesses of their fellow Nigerians in the North for selling alcohol, where was Malami to defend them? But now that the Open Grazing ban has touched his ‘anointed’ killer herdsmen, he resurfaces to protect them.
“If Nigerians can’t do open grazing of pigs in the North, then local and foreign herdsmen can’t do open grazing of cows in the South. You should not condemn one without condemning the other, except you mean Southerners are second-class citizens!
“The comment by that banning open grazing is like banning spare parts trading, shows this regime is fully behind killer herdsmen. If Northern states can ban beer and pig farming, Southern states can ban open grazing.