By Elohor Igbru
Inspite of its commitment to implementing the National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP), Oyo state government will not be providing land for cattle rearers who wish to establish ranches in the state for free.
Governor Seyi Makinde made the clarification today following the controversy which was generated from his statement after he met with his Kwara state counterpart, Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.
Makinde had said on tuesday, when he met with AbdulRazaq : ” The NLTP which is already being implemented in Kwara state would be implemented in Oyo state leading to further collaborations between both states on economy and security.”
The NLTP was developed by states and adopted by National Economic Council to address the farmer-herder crisis in the country.
However, many people had interpreted the statement to mean Oyo state would be implementing the RUGA system which was initiated by the federal government but later suspended after public uproar.
At the time of reporting, Gov. Makinde is trending on the micro blogging site, Twitter with many commentators describing him as a sell-out.
Clarifying his statement, Makinde said the NLTP will not be implemented as a whole.
He said only the aspect of the plan beneficial to the state will be implemented.
Makinde: “My attention has been drawn to this tweet regarding the implementation of the National Livestock Transformation Plan during the joint security meeting, yesterday. For the avoidance of doubt, when I said we would implement the plan, I didn’t mean a wholesale implementation.”
“We will be taking aspects which are beneficial for our state. As I have stated on several occasions, our position in Oyo State is that ranching is a private business and should be carried out as such.
“Our admin won’t be providing land for free to private investors for ranching.”
