The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has cautioned residents against using ethnic slurs and blame to inflame tensions between farmers and herders.
In a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja, the command’s spokesperson, Monica Ojobi, quoted the FCT Commandant, Olusola Odumosu, during a courtesy visit by members of the Herders-Farmers Dispute Resolution Volunteers.
Odumosu urged residents to abandon blame games to achieve lasting peace. “We must also avoid labelling any particular group, ethnicity or tribe as the one engaging in violent crimes in Nigeria,” he said.
He underscored the importance of early warning signals, intelligence gathering and non-kinetic strategies to prevent crises from escalating. He also called for stronger mechanisms to foster national unity and consciousness, essential for a thriving agricultural sector.
“For us in the NSCDC, we are determined not to allow these clashes to thrive or succeed. We will continue to build peaceful initiatives and deal decisively with those who perpetrate crimes through such conflicts,” Odumosu said.
The commandant further called for sustained advocacy, reorientation and public enlightenment at all levels to reinforce harmony between the two groups. “We must continue to educate, enlighten and reorient our people to understand that peaceful coexistence is not only possible but necessary,” he added.
Earlier, Mustafa Suleiman, national chairman of the Herders and Farmers Dispute Resolution Volunteers, lauded the NSCDC’s critical role in managing conflicts from grassroots to national level, noting that the corps’ efforts in sustaining peace and security across communities cannot be overstated.