Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State says his administration has commenced the provision of social amenities to about 3,000 RUGA settlements across the state.
Bagudu disclosed this when he addressed State House correspondents in Abuja on Tuesday, August 6.
He said the state government was providing schools, water, healthcare and veterinary services to uplift the quality of life of the herders as well as to check possible farmers/herdsmen conflicts in the state.
The governor described as unfortunate the controversy generated by the proposed implementation of the RUGA policy in some parts of the country.
According to him, RUGA is not a Fulani or Hausa word, explaining that it is an acronym given to Nigeria by its colonialists for Rural Grazing Area.
“If you go to any state with significant Fulani population, the places where Fulani live are largely called Ruga.
“Like in Kebbi, we have over 3,000 Rugas, they are very small settlements. I as the state governor, I am doing the bit that I can to provide water, schools, veterinary services, primary healthcare in those settlements,’’ he maintained.
Thegovernor dismissed the assertion that the RUGA policy was being forced on state governments by the federal government.
He added that the federal government did not request any state to provide land for the scheme.
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had reported that the senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly matters, Ita Enang, said that the controversial Ruga settlement policy was amended into the Nigeria’s constitution by the land use act during the administration of former president Olusegun Obasanjo.
