Ngige Backs Buhari: Gadaffi Responsible For Herdsmen Killings

Minister of Labour, Dr Chris Ngige, has backed President Muhammadu Buhari’s exoneration of Fulani herdsmen from the killings across the country, insisting that gunmen trained by late Muammar Gaddafi are behind the killings.

Ngige equally said contrary to claims that the criminals have the backing of Buhari, the president ‘‘is not silent over the killings’’.

The minister reportedly said this during a stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that held on Sunday in Anambra state.

Ngige was quoted as saying, “It is misinformation to say that the President was behind herdsmen killings in the country. Such opinions are intended to instigate the citizenry against the President.

“However, Nigeria is a secular state where no one can force any religion on any person.

“Such misinformation is practical evidence of rumours and the All Progressives Congress is not perturbed because it knows it is an election year when anything can happen.

“Some misguided elements who are miscreants; some of them pose as herdsmen and they go and do cattle rustling, shooting the owners of cattle and take their cattle away.

“Buhari is not silent over the killings across the country by Fulani herdsmen, rather he has condemned it.

“The President noted that in addition to the economic implications of the activities of herdsmen, some people were fighters who had access to arms and ammunition; trained in Libya as Gaddaffi stockpiled arms and ammunition over the years and when he was killed, his arms were dispersed across West Africa comprising Nigeria, Mali, Niger, Chad and some others that have prevalence of violence and random killings.”