The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) has vehemently rejected efforts by some U.S. lawmakers to have the herders’ union designated as a terrorist organisation, calling the characterisation “false, unfounded and injurious” and urging the Nigerian government to intervene diplomatically.
The association’s stance was outlined during a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, February 16, 2026, amid debate over the H.R. 7457 – Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026 before the United States Congress. MACBAN National President Alhaji Baba Ngelzarma said the association has never been convicted or indicted for terrorism, banditry, kidnapping or cattle rustling, and stressed that linking it with violent activity undermines its legal status.
“We categorically reject such insinuations as false, unfounded, and injurious to the integrity of a duly registered national association,” Ngelzarma said, noting that “no court in Nigeria or abroad has ever convicted or indicted MACBAN for criminal or terrorist activity.” He emphasised the group’s legal registration and recognised role in livestock development and conflict mediation. Ngelzarma also warned that blacklisting legitimate organisations could damage Nigeria’s economy, disrupt trade and further marginalise pastoral communities that depend on livestock production.
He said pastoralists themselves have been victims of insecurity, citing that “in 2025 alone, at least eight of our state leaders were killed by criminal elements,” and insisted that pastoralist communities are “victims of insecurity, not perpetrators.” The association called on the National Assembly’s Senate Committees on Foreign Affairs and National Security and Intelligence to intervene and activate diplomatic channels to engage constructively with the U.S. Congress.
Ngelzarma urged that “this matter be elevated within bilateral security dialogues to ensure counterterrorism cooperation is not premised on false equivalences,” and appealed to Nigeria’s foreign affairs and security officials to protect the nation’s security architecture from external narratives that could be misleading.