The Ekiti State House of Assembly has assured residents of adequate protection of lives and property while condemning the open grazing of cattle and other ruminant animals within the state.

The chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture and Food Security, Babatunde Fawekun, gave the assurance on Friday at a public hearing on the open grazing bill at the assembly complex in Ado-Ekiti.

He said the engagement was organised by the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Food Security and the Committee on Security and Special Duties on the Prohibition of Unguarded Grazing of Cattle and Other Ruminants bill.

Mr Fawekun said the amendment to the bill was inevitable and aimed at guiding herders’ activities and maintaining peaceful coexistence between farmers and herders.

He said other resolutions of the committees included stipulating grazing hours from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., a ban on night grazing, and the placement of a minimum age limit of 18 years for herders.

Mr Fawekun added that proper registration of cattle rearers with the Ministry of Agriculture, geo-tagging of cattle, and prescribed punishment for violators were part of the resolutions.

In their contributions, Bosede Olowookere, Yomi Ayorinde, and the vice chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, Kareem Agunbiade, condemned the indiscriminate movement of cattle within the Ado-Ekiti metropolis and assured legislative support through an amended law.

Speaking, the commissioner for agriculture and food security, Ebenezer Boluwade, commended the lawmakers for their efforts to improve the lives of the people of the state, noting that the bill should be more elaborate and inclusive.

He added that proper registration of herders would be carried out by the ministry, while community registration would be made compulsory to regulate herders’ activities and identify lawless elements.

The public hearing was attended by security agencies, okada riders, the Association of Cattle Rearers, and representatives of market women.

(NAN)