The legal
adage which posits that law has the capacity to positively regulate the conduct
of people anywhere anytime has never ceased to fascinate me. One reason behind this attraction is how
ambitious that proposition looks - sometimes almost daring the intrigues of
people in a dreamland. Another reason for this fascination is the fact that law,
in action, has proven to do a lot of positive things about human behavior that
otherwise would have gone so awry and injurious to public interest.
Through exploitation of the potency
of law, the old age menace caused by the activities of Fulani herdsmen in Ghana
can be sustainably addressed. That course of action is, indeed, within the
realm of reasonable possibilities.
How the menace evolved
Before nomadic Fulani herdsmen
found their way into the shores of Ghana, many years ago, some Ghanaians reared
cattle primarily as a source of livelihood.
Cattle rearing amongst the indigenes were particularly predominant in
the northern belt of the country. At
this point in time, the cattle used to sparingly destroy crops. This
occasionally generated conflicts between farmers and indigenous cattle owners.
There was always a way of amicably
resolving such conflicts whenever they occurred. At this juncture, even though conflicts still
occasionally arose between farmers and Fulani cattle herdsmen (particularly the
nomadic), there still existed harmony amongst the people. This was because
there was a more disciplined way of avoiding confrontation and addressing
problems when they occurred. This was often done through the forthrightness of traditional
authority and commitment by cattle owners not to allow their cattle to invade
farms that had been earlier invaded.
However, as human population grew,
more nomadic Fulani herdsmen increased, cattle numbers increased and land
became scarce or competitive (which was fostered by weather variability’s
negative effects on grazing lands), the structures that had ensured harmony amongst competing economic forces were
found wanting. Increasingly, it became clearer that time-tested legal and
socioeconomic structures were urgently needed to effectively counteract the
situation.
Apparently, the authority of chiefs
and other elders was heavily undermined, to this extent. Various District
Assemblies where the activities of the Fulani herdsmen took place came out with
by-laws to regulate such activities. But these were also flagrantly submerged
by combined forces of institutional weaknesses of assemblies and sheer
overwhelming nature of the menace at hand. This was evidenced by frequent
clashes that kept occurring between farmers/indigenes and Fulani
herdsmen/settlers.
The situation could not have been
more described as a menace. It became worst to the extent that the narrative
was generally in favor of ‘them’ against ‘us’. Thus, instead of recalcitrant
and errant Fulani herdsmen against farmers/communities, it was rather widely deemed
as Fulanis against Ghanaians/indigene residents. Almost a near xenophobia
situation creeping into Ghanaian society, it was as if some Fulanis were not
Ghanaians or that the destructive activities perpetuated by some Fulani
herdsmen were done and shared by all Fulanis in Ghana, unfortunately.
In recent times and even more
recently in the first quarter of 2016, the menace has become more particularly
awry and nauseating. In Agogo area of Ashanti region, in particular
and other areas of the country in general, some of the Fulani herdsmen have
allowed their cattle to be on unprecedented rampage destroying crops here and
there and adversely affecting livelihoods thereof.
The worst part of it is that because
the systems put in place, including ‘operation cow Leg’ and local legal
instruments, did not live up to expectation, the disgruntled innocent farmers
got killed anyhow by criminal elements of the Fulani herdsmen whenever the
farmers complained and reacted to the destruction brought onto their farmlands.
This also came along with reprisal attacks where some innocent Fulanis may have
been killed.
Ranching legislation
To this day, hundreds have lost
their lives to this menace, as the unfortunate situation persists and worsens.
If left unchecked or continued to be checked lackadaisically with lack of
thoroughness, coherence and decisiveness, many more innocent Ghanaians and foreign
herdsmen are bound to lose their lives to the menace.
In a democratic and peaceful
country, it is very unacceptable to continue to leave indigenous Ghanaians and
Fulani herdsmen to their own fate - as has largely been so far decorated with
window-dressing and kneejerk reactions by authorities concerned. That is why
there is more than needed a legally sustainable remedy championed by commitment
and action to the course of lasting order and justice.
It first brings into broader focus why
there is the urgent need to reconsider the free-range manner in which livestock
including cattle, sheep and goat are reared by most people in the country
including both Fulanis and Indigenes. To
this, I propose the following - that a national legislation on rearing of
cattle in particular and other ruminants should be fashioned out, enacted and
promulgated with immediate effect. Core principles that should guide this
legislation will include:
(i)
Anyone owning, rearing or intending to rear cattle or such
ruminants in Ghana must have ranch (es) or very restricted area(s) within which
the animals can be kept and fed, much so that no such animals under the
possession of any person or group of people can have the freedom to move freely
outside the restricted borders to invade, tamper with and or destroy property
of others.
This is
mindful of the fact, to some extent, that the right to freedom of movement by
these animals may be necessarily violated. Under the circumstance, this is the
best especially so when the ranching legal framework should provide the most legally
appropriate way the animals will be handled in the restricted space.
(ii)
Foreign migrants with cattle or such other ruminants
while entering Ghana must under no circumstance be allowed into the country
without absolute proof that they have the capacity to acquire space to rear and
keep their animals in a restricted space. Without this proof and permit
thereof, any such foreign animals and their possessors found illegally
wandering in Ghana must have the owners immediately repatriated and have their
animals seized for use by hospitals, prisons or such other empathic public
establishments.
With
respect to foreign animals that have gained legal entry into the country, if
they violate the articles of the legislation, the owners should be heavily
fined and given a strong warning that three of such violations will result in
heavy fines each with their outright repatriation and seizure of their animals
on the last count.
In the case
of the indigenes or Ghanaians for that matter, first violation will result in
heavy fine while three subsequent violations thereafter will result in heavy
fines each with the last one attracting outright seizure of the animals.
This
proposition is mindful of ECOWAS protocols on free movement of ‘persons,
establishment and residence’ (Ch.IV). It also gives recognition to the 1992
constitution which protects the migration rights of foreigners under its own
principles and the international laws it binds Ghana to respect and enforce.
The
protocols or any international legal instruments by no means deposit any
meaning which suggests that the right to free movement of goods, people and
services should be recklessly achieved. If that were the case, then the
protocols and such international legal instruments may have unreasonably
outlived its purpose and far behind the reality of the times.
(iii)
Strict licensing and monitoring mechanisms will be
activated to ensure compliance with the tenets and components of the
legislation.
(iv)
The ministry of food and agriculture, in collaboration
with district assemblies under local government ministry, ministry of justice
and attorney general, ministry of interior, ministry of defence, Members of
Parliament, Chiefs and opinion leaders, should be the implementing agency under
the auspices of a commission.
(v)
By-laws of district assemblies on ranching should be
developed and or strengthened to detail, protect and enhance the implementation
of any legislation on ranching
Bottom-line
Formulation, Passage and
implementation of ranching law in Ghana are long overdue. The discussions on
ranching legislation which started in 2012 have been in the pipeline for too long.
The plight and voices of ordinary communities and farmers, particularly the
Peasant Farmers Association, on expediting ranching law in Ghana must be respectively
alleviated and heard forthwith.
Burkina Faso, Cameroon and other
countries in the sub-region have significantly curbed the menace of herdsmen through
ranching. There is no excuse why Ghana must not act decisively now - If for
nothing at all but at least to ensure harmony, peace and tranquility between
farmers/local communities and cattle/animal owners or caretakers. It is
important that the foregoing principles and guidelines are incorporated in the
ranching law in order to secure a sustainable remedy to the menace of herdsmen
in Ghana.
In the meantime, the police and military
should constantly have their boots and ears on the ground and take lawfully drastic
actions against anyone who is found to disturb the peace of local communities with
their cattle or such other livestock.
No comments:
Post a Comment