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Deji Elumoye in Abuja and James Sowole in Akure
The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) has backed the one-week ultimatum given by the Ondo State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, to herdsmen to vacate the forests in the state.
This is coming as farmers, forest guards and the members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the state have staged a protest in support of the governor’s decision to eject herdsmen from all the forest reserves in the state.
In a statement issued yesterday entitled: ‘SMBLF warns FG on Herdsmen’, the Forum frowned at the ‘dangerous game’ the federal government is playing over its overt support for Miyetti Allah to violate the lawful order of Ondo State Government banning grazing in its forest reserves.
There was a solidarity rally in Akure, the Ondo State capital, on Thursday as commercial drivers, forest guards, farmers and traders stormed the streets to express support for Governor Rotimi Akeredolu order to herdsmen to vacate forest reserves in the state within seven days.
He said “1,718 persons were involved in the 252 crashes, 179 died while 608 sustained various degrees of injuries,”
The sector commander attributed the accident to dangerous driving, wrongful overtaking, route violation and driving under the influence of alcohol among others.
He explained that in 2021, the command has stepped up public enlightenment and enforcement, as they discovered that without enforcement, road users would continue to flout traffic rules.
“We have sensitized the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Road Transport Employer’s Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and motor park managers in the state to stop the sale of alcohol in motor parks,”
“We have discovered that most of the accidents happened on the highways and we have increased our visibility on them in order to reduce crashes on the road,”