A planned resolution in the U.S. Congress that would designate the organization as a terrorist organization and seize its assets is being resisted diplomatically by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN).
In an interview with Nigerian Info fm Lagos on Tuesday, Baba Othman Ngelzarma, the national president of MACBAN, maintained that the organization is a genuine trade union that has never sponsored or encouraged criminal activity in Nigeria. He contended that banditry and resource competition, not religious conflict, are the main causes of violence in Nigeria.
Ngelzarma confirmed that the organization has formally contacted the U.S. Congress by sending comprehensive defense documents through the U.S. Ambassador in Nigeria. “We are also reaching out through our partners that we deal with in America,” “Let them advance our cause in Congress. Let Congress know who we are and how we operate.”
MACBAN’s documents were written to prove MACBAN’s status as a victim, not a perpetrator, of the violence.
It detailed the financial and human costs inflicted upon its members, including:
- A compiled list of MACBAN officials reportedly killed by bandits and cattle rustlers, including multiple chairmen in Kogi State, the chairman in Kwara State who was assassinated in his house, and the chairman in Katsina State whose wife and daughter were kidnapped.
– Records of ransom payments detailing the economic toll on herders, including a claim that members in a single local government area paid ransoms totaling over 300 million Naira to kidnappers.
– Documentation of major livestock losses, such as an incident where over 10,000 cows belonging to pastoralists were swept away by bandits in Sokoto State.
Ngelzarma also vehemently disputed the argument put forth by certain US senators that the violence is a “Christian genocide.”Ngelzarma asserted that Muslims in the North-West and North-East are the main targets of insurgency and murders, saying, “If you’re going to label the entire situation as a genocide, then let it be genocide against humanity.”
By highlighting its extensive history of collaboration with both domestic and foreign agencies, the group has argued that it is being falsely depicted as an aggressor.
Ngelzarma revealed that the group is making a concerted effort to change the perception in Washington.
Though Ngelzarma stated they are yet to receive a formal response through the U.S. Ambassador, he confirmed that the association is trying to reach out to members of the U.S. Congress to understand and plead their cause as a peaceful association.
MACBAN maintains that its internal protocols are designed to weed out criminal elements.
“Our members are fully screened by security agencies before admission,” Ngelzarma said.
He added that the association has previously engaged peacefully with numerous international organizations, including USAID, to prove its non-militant status.
