Does Section 15 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) override the rights of state governors or local landowners regarding the use of land within their jurisdiction?
Can we, in good conscience, reconcile the ongoing armed incursion and territorial occupation by Fulani herders with the spirit and letter of Section 15(2) and (3)(b) of the Constitution that promote national integration and guarantee residency rights? This question became necessary in light of the suffering, unprovoked attacks, and displacement of local farmers across the Middle Belt and Southern Nigeria for decades.
Section 15(4) further states that "the State shall foster a feeling of belonging and of involvement among the various tribes of the Federation to the end that loyalty to the nation shall override sectional loyalties." But how can we speak of national unity when armed groups pledge loyalty not to the Nigerian flag or Constitution, but to an ethnic heritage that disregards national sovereignty?
Let me be clear: this piece is not written to dwell on the atrocities, brutality, or lawlessness of certain Fulani herders. Rather, it is to challenge the dangerous narrative advanced by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and echoed by Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed that herders, including those from outside Nigeria, have an unqualified right to graze anywhere in the country under the supposed protection of Section 15 of the Constitution.
That claim is both legally incorrect and morally indefensible.
Section 15(3)(b) does not give anyone the right to trespass on private property, invade cultivated farmland, or dispossess local communities of their ancestral lands. It certainly does not empower individuals to terrorise, kill, or establish de facto control over territory through violence. The right to live and settle anywhere in Nigeria, while constitutionally protected, is not absolute or unilateral. It is subject to laws, local customs, and the property rights of others.
The Constitution protects the collective rights of all Nigerians, not just those of one ethnic group. Land rights remain the legal responsibility of states, and governors are the constitutional custodians of land under the Land Use Act. No provision in Section 15 or anywhere else in the constitution, grants carte blanche for herders or anyone else to violate these laws.
And yet, watching Governor Bala Mohammed’s unrepentant defence of open, unrestricted grazing, even by foreign Fulani, and the deafening silence from his political colleagues, it becomes clear why figures like Sunday Igboho and Nnamdi Kanu have emerged as heroes within their communities.
They may be controversial, but their popularity speaks volumes. They have stepped into a vacuum created by the federal government’s absence, the indifference of security forces, and the helplessness of local leaders. They feel the anguish of their people. They see the pain, and they act, whether rightly or wrongly, because no one else is.
Like millions of Nigerians at home and in the diaspora, they have witnessed the collapse of state protection and the casual erosion of national identity. In the void left by lawlessness and selective governance, they heard a cry for leadership, and they answered. History is now recording the consequences.
If we are truly serious about peace, national unity, and the rule of law, then we must reject both the extremism of violence and the heresy of constitutional distortion. Section 15 is a call for integration, not a license for invasion.
No comments:
Post a Comment
The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.