Social media activist, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), Wednesday, alleged that opposition to ranching in Nigeria is fueled by government officials who use the cattle business to launder stolen public funds.
VDM made the claim while speaking at the 2026 Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers state.
In a viral footage trending online, obtained by Blueprint.ng, he claimed that cattle roaming Nigerian streets are being used by some officials to conceal and misappropriate government resources, adding that many Nigerians are unaware of the alleged practice.
He said: “If you go around our country, you will see cows moving around in the street and will be wondering why so many cows are moving like that. You know why? That is money laundering. It is the government.”
He broke down the mathematics, stating that a fat cow currently sells for about N2 million, meaning 500 cows would be worth N1 billion.
“The money that is being stolen from the government by government officials is put in the cow business. One thousand cows give them two billion naira,” he alleged.
VDM further suggested that the alleged financial interests in the cattle business explain why some people oppose ranching.
“The government won’t tell the Fulani to stay in one place as ranching because that is their investment,” he said.
The claim was presented as an allegation and was not accompanied by specific evidence or names of individuals involved.
Stakeholders, including herders’ associations and government agencies, are yet to officially respond to the allegations.
