No fewer than 34 cows were siezed by the Bayelsa State Liverstock Management Committee (BSLMC) in Yenogoa, the state capital, for flouting the grazing law set by the government.

This was confirmed by the Chairman of the Committee, and Commissioner of Agriculture, David Alagoa, who noted that the cows were impounded on Monday, around the Bayelsa palm area of Yenogoa, adding that the herders chose a convenient period of the night, to engage in grazing of their cows.

This development came after the State governor Douye Diri signed into law the Liverstock Breeding and Marketing Regulation Bill, 2021, in March, after passage by the House of Assembly, that, “any person found engaging in open grazing of livestock on foot, commits an offence , and would be arrested, and prosecuted with the livestock impounded

The Commissioner, ” This is also movement by trekking, around the Bayelsa Palm to the Swali slaughter. That tends to happen at about 1am in the morning, so, they chose a convenient time to graze, when there is nobody around”.

Alogoa maintained that the committee would follow the anti open grazing law to the latter. He said the impounded Cattle would remain in the custody of the committee, until the herders paid the prescribed fine.

He did not attest any information to declare the herders were arrested for prosecution as prescribed by the law.

He, however, said “We have been monitoring their movement, and we decided to surprise them on Monday. We were able to impound 34 cows, last night. We are going to follow the law. The law states that we impound, and there is also fee to be paid for tresspersers.”

Ijeoma Njoku reporting, Obinwannem News | June 9, 2021