Fulani Association Urges Individual Prosecution of Criminals

The Kautal Pulaaku Fulbe Association of Nigeria, representing the Fulani ethnic community, called for security agencies and the media to cease ethnic profiling and to arrest and prosecute criminals as individuals rather than as an ethnic group. At a press conference, President Dr Huseini Buzaye condemned the criminalization of "Fulani Pastoralist" as synonymous with banditry and terrorism, which has led to extrajudicial killings and hate speech against innocent pastoralists.

He reported that hundreds of innocent pastoralists have been killed in recent months in coordinated attacks across various states, including Plateau, Niger, Sokoto, Kebbi, and Zamfara. Buzaye requested an independent investigation into these killings and urged the federal government to provide relief materials to displaced pastoralists.

He commended President Bola Tinubu for establishing the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development but noted its underfunding. Buzaye called for a national dialogue on farmer-herder conflicts, involving various stakeholders, to address the ongoing violence that has claimed over 20,000 lives in the past decade.