Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) has said it had not endorsed any of the presidential candidates for the 2023 general election.
The association said its experience with President Muhammadu Buhari informed the decision of its members to be well informed about the candidates before supporting any them in next year’s polls.
MACBAN alleged that contrary to many people’s belief that the association had a strong tie with President Buhari, who is perceived as a cattle dealer, like all members of the association, the President had not been close to the association and its members.
MACBAN’s National President Baba Othman Ngelzarma said he had personally met with most of the presidential candidates, except Labour Party’s (LP’s) candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, who he said he could only reach through a contact.
“I have presented them with our Seven-Points Demands. So, we are now waiting to hear from them and see how our demands are addressed in their manifestoes before we can decide on what we think is good for us.
“We have not yet endorsed any candidate. We are still consulting. We have presented them with certain demands and now waiting for their answers,” he said.
Commenting on MACBAN’s relationship with President Buhari, the association’s national president, who recently assumed the leadership of the group, said: “We are suffering because people believe that President Buhari is for us and we are for him. That is why we became the battleground for politicians.
“That is why people call us criminals, because when political opponents want to fight President Buhari, they attack the Fulani herders and accuse them of engaging in all sorts of crimes.”
