A group of Igbo leaders have vowed not to allow the establishment of RUGA Cow Farm Project in any part of the region.
They claimed that Igbo land is small and densely populated with over 800 people per square kilometre, making them the most crowded region in Nigeria.
In a statement on Monday jointly issued by three civil rights groups, the Igbo leaders drew the attention of government to the fact their lands are choked up already and struggling to find place for farming, housing and industries.
Those who signed the statement are Ben Nwankwo and Evans Nwankwo who are
Executive Directors of Ambassador for Self-Determination USA, Chief Sylvester Onyia, President, American Veterans Of Igbo Descent (AVID) and Maxwell Dede with Rev Father Augustine Odimegwa on behalf of Rising Sun Group.
The three groups warned South East governors and other politicians in the region supporting the RUGA cow farm project to desist from doing so in the interest of the present and future people of the region.
Specifically, they warned the Anambra State Governor and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo to take hint of their warning and stop playing with Igbo lives over establishment of cow ranch.
Their joint statement dated 7th July 2025, read in part: "We the concerned people of Igbo land have said it before and we are saying it again:
There is no land for RUGA anywhere in Igbo land, not today, not tomorrow, not ever!
"We will resist it with everything in us. RUGA is not about peace or development. It is a private business disguised as a government policy. It is a hidden plan to take over our ancestral lands and hand them to Fulani settlers, using agriculture as an excuse.
"Let it be known that the RUGA project and the National Waterways Bill are part of the same evil plan.
"They are trying to seize control of our lands, rivers and streams and give them to outsiders. We rejected this plan before and nothing has changed to make us accept it now.
"Igbo land is small and densely populated. We are over 800 people per square kilometre, making us the most crowded region in Nigeria.
"We are already struggling to find land for farming, housing, and industries.
"So how can anyone expect us to give out land for cows?. If the government is serious about ranching, let them go to Niger State, which has over 76,000 square kilometres of land, far more than the whole of the Southeast put together.
"Look at what happened in Benue State. People welcomed the herders but today Benue has become a killing field. Over 1,800 people have been killed by armed herdsmen from 2018 to 2023, according to human rights reports.
"Even here in Igbo land, Lokpanta cattle market in Abia State has become a hotbed of crime, kidnapping and killings. We don’t want that problem to spread. We cannot allow people who may become killers of our women and children tomorrow to settle on our land today.
"It was Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and IPOB that first raised the alarm and stood up for our people when this RUGA and Waterways matter started under President Muhammadu Buhari.
They educated our people, led peaceful protests and helped rural communities to say no to the project plan."
"We are using this medium to warn Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State to stop playing with Igbo lives, stop negotiating project that may jeopardize the peace of our region.
"We also call on all governors and politicians in the Southeast who may have supported this RUGA project to desist in the interest of South East region.
"The people are watching. History will remember. And there will be no hiding place for anyone who betrays Igbo land
"Let it be made clear that we are not against any Igbo man or woman who wants to do livestock business. In fact, many of our people are running successful farms in Nsukka, Eke, Obollo Afor and other places.
"But those are private businesses on family land and not federal land grabs under the cover of RUGA.
"What we reject is a plan that will turn us into strangers on our own land, where outsiders come, settle, multiply and eventually take over our communities. That is reverse colonisation and we will never allow it.
"From Enugu to Ebonyi, from Abia to Anambra, from Imo to every corner of our land, let it be known: There is no space for RUGA here. We will not allow our land to be given away by politicians.
"Let all traditional rulers, town unions, youth groups, market women, churches and every community stay alert. Our land is our life. We must defend it by every legal and peaceful means" the statement said.