MACBAN's National President, Baba Ngelzarma. Credit : MACBAN
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria has dismissed claims linking the Fulani ethnic group to thousands of armed militants and bandits across the country, insisting the community should not be collectively blamed for criminal activity.
The association was reacting to a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, which estimated that about 30,000 armed Fulani militants operate in different parts of Nigeria in groups ranging from 10 to 1,000 members, and described them as major drivers of religious freedom violations.
But in a statement on Friday, MACBAN National President, Baba Ngelzarma, said the figure does not reflect the Fulani population in Nigeria and warned against profiling an entire ethnic group based on the activities of criminal elements.
He said the 30,000 militants and bandits cited in the report “do not, and will never, represent the 14.5 million peaceful Fulani citizens of this country.”
