Buhari confesses that had he not gone to school he would have been a Fulani cattle herdsman

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari confessed that had he not had the opportunity of going to school he might have been one of the irate Fulani youths participating in the ongoing attacks against farmers across Nigeria's Middle Belt.

Over recent years, heavily-armed Fulani cattle herdsmen have been raiding farming villages across north central Nigeria, leavings hundreds dead in their wake. In recent weeks, the AK-47-weilding herdsmen have stepped up their attacks in Benue and Taraba State, totally overwhelming the security forces.

Under fire for his inaction over the crisis, President Buhari has been summoned by the House of Representatives to come and explain why the government has allowed the bloodshed to continue. Speaking in Bauchi State yesterday, the president urged Fulanis to send their children to school, adding that if they remain uneducated they run the risk of becoming unruly thugs and murderers.

Addressing a large crowd during his two-day state visit to Bauchi State yesterday at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi, where he inaugurated the 261 Nigerian Air Force Referral Hospital, some roads and five tractors and some farm implements, President Buhari addressed thousands of local residents in Hausa. He encouraged them to allow their children to go to school.

President Buhari said: “Make every effort to put your children in school, plead with them to be patient and read hard. In this generation, you cannot make it except you are educated.

“Now, look at the farmers /herdsmen’s clashes in the northern part of this country, I have been telling people that if I had not gone to school, I would not have gone into the military and since my cows are finished, maybe, I would have been involved in this fight. However,  because I went to school, I got a job to do."

He added that because of desertification there is no bush and he may have been going out to cut down trees. President Buhari said: “You should strive hard and be educated , get the education that will benefit you and the society, as it is not compulsory that government will give you what to do.”