The Universal Reformed Christian Church, popularly known as NKST, has rejected the Federal Government’s proposed pilot ranching programme in Benue State, saying the government should prioritise the return and resettlement of displaced communities before considering ranching projects.
The church said 5,987 of its members had been killed and 753 worship centres destroyed in attacks blamed on armed herdsmen in Benue and neighbouring states.
NKST stated its position in a statement by the General Secretary of its Synod Executive Committee, Rev. Ta Targba.
Targba said the church was not opposed to peaceful livestock farming or efforts by the Federal Government to find a lasting solution to the recurring conflict between farmers and herders.
He, however, said selecting Benue as a pilot state for a ranching programme was unacceptable, considering the scale of killings, displacement and destruction suffered by communities in the state.
According to him, thousands of displaced people are still unable to return to their ancestral communities, making their restoration and resettlement a more urgent priority.
“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,” Targba said.
He noted that generations of Benue people had cultivated their ancestral lands and built homes, churches, schools, hospitals, markets and other institutions on them.
The cleric argued that any government policy involving the allocation, acquisition or conversion of land must take into account the ancestral rights, livelihoods, property rights and constitutional interests of affected communities.
Targba also questioned the decision to consider Benue for the pilot scheme after years of violence that had forced residents out of several communities.
“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.
The NKST General Secretary said the church’s opposition was informed by the impact of the prolonged security crisis on its members and institutions.
“Over 5,987 of our members have been killed; 753 of our worship centres were destroyed by these marauders,” he alleged.
The church called on the federal government to make the restoration and resettlement of displaced communities the foundation of any agricultural intervention in Benue State.
It also demanded adequate security to guarantee the safe and voluntary return of displaced persons to their communities.
According to NKST, the government should support the reconstruction of homes, schools, healthcare centres, markets, roads, water facilities and churches destroyed during attacks.
The church further called for a comprehensive inventory of public and faith-based institutions destroyed in affected communities.
It insisted that no ranch should be established on land belonging to communities whose inhabitants had been violently displaced.
Suspected herdsmen reportedly kill 5,987 NKST members, destroy 753 churches in Benue