By Peter Duru, Makurdi
The Universal Reformed Christian Church, popularly known as NKST Church, has rejected the Federal Government’s proposed pilot ranching programme in Benue State, citing the killing of 5,987 of its members and the destruction of 753 worship centres during attacks blamed on armed herdsmen.
The Church said the proposed ranching scheme was unacceptable in a state where thousands of indigenous people had been displaced by violence and many communities were still unable to return to their ancestral homes.
The position was contained in a statement by the General Secretary of the NKST Synod Executive Committee, Rev. Ta Targba, who said the Church was not opposed to peaceful livestock farming but strongly rejected the use of Benue as a pilot state for the Federal Government’s ranching policy.
Targba acknowledged the Federal Government’s efforts to find a lasting solution to the recurring herders-farmers crisis but argued that the priority should be the protection, restoration and resettlement of communities displaced by the violence.
“Benue is not merely a geographical space available for government experimentation. The State is predominantly an agrarian society. Its land is the ancestral inheritance, economic foundation and livelihood of millions of people,” he said.
According to him, generations of Benue people had cultivated their ancestral lands and established homes, churches, schools, hospitals, markets and other institutions on them.
He said any policy involving land allocation, acquisition or conversion must take into consideration the ancestral rights, livelihoods, property rights and constitutional interests of the people occupying and cultivating the land.
The NKST General Secretary questioned why Benue, which had suffered extensive displacement and destruction from violent conflicts, should be selected as a “laboratory” for a policy involving land allocation for the livestock economy allegedly associated with the crisis.
“The NKST Church therefore asks: Why should a state whose people have suffered displacement and destruction because of violent conflict now be selected as a laboratory for a policy involving land allocation for the same livestock economy that has been at the centre of these conflicts?
“The answer cannot be merely administrative. The people of Benue deserve to be heard,” he said.
Targba stressed that the Church was speaking from experience, noting that its members and institutions had been directly affected by the prolonged violence in Benue and neighbouring states.
“Over 5,987 of our members have been killed; 753 of our worship centres were destroyed by these marauders,” he stated.
The Church called on the Federal Government to make the restoration and resettlement of displaced communities the foundation of any agricultural intervention in the state.
It demanded adequate security to guarantee the safe and voluntary return of displaced persons, alongside the reconstruction of homes, schools, healthcare centres, markets, roads, water systems and churches destroyed during the violence.
The NKST also urged the Federal Government to conduct a comprehensive inventory of destroyed public and faith-based institutions in affected communities, stressing that no ranch should be established on land from which people had been violently displaced.
While reiterating its commitment to peace, reconciliation, justice and peaceful coexistence, the Church urged the Federal Government to reconsider the ranching plan and focus on its primary responsibility of protecting lives and property.
Targba said the NKST remained willing to work with the Federal and state governments, traditional institutions, other churches, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to promote lasting peace, stressing that “restoration” must be at the centre of any government intervention in Benue.
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