Enugu Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi
Enugu governor, Ugwuanyi assents to anti-open grazing law
Barely two weeks after the state House of Assembly passed the open grazing prohibition bill after a public hearing, penultimate Tuesday, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has now signed it into law.
Titled; ‘Prohibition of Open Grazing and Cattle Ranching Law of Enugu State,’ the document was assented to by Governor Ugwuanyi at the Government House, Enugu, Tuesday.
The law prohibits open grazing, regulates cattle ranching, and for connected purposes was recently passed by the Enugu State House of Assembly.
Ugwuanyi’s assent to this bill is expected to improve security and peace in the state.
The bill was passed by the House after a public hearing on it, last Tuesday, conducted by the Enugu House of Assembly Speaker, Uchenna Ubosi .
This followed the September 1 deadline issued by the Southern Governors Forum for an end to open grazing of cattle in southern region of the country.
During the public hearing, leaders of the cattle breeders association in the state had asked for one a month extension to enable them make input on the bill, but was reportedly ignored by the House.
Chairman of the Miyetti Allah cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in the South-East, Alhaji Gidado said that the request became necessary following the time constraint to respond to the invitation from the State Assembly on the matter.
