Monday Ubani, the head of the Nigerian Bar Association‘s Section on Public Interest and Development Law, has vowed to file a lawsuit against the Federal Government if it outlaws cowhide, often known as “pọnmọ.”
In a statement he signed on Wednesday, September 21, 2022; Ubani made this claim and noted that pọnmọ “is the most common delicacy that is mostly enjoyed by the average citizen due to its affordability, and given that fish, meat, and other sources of protein had become very expensive and therefore unaffordable by the common man in the country.”
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The government’s decision was questioned by the rights activist.
The truth is that pọnmọ continues to be the most consistent protein or meat-like ingredient in the stews and soups consumed by the average person, he said. They have grown restless and envious of the only meat-like item that the average citizen chews while eating his “meal of affliction,” despite the fact that politicians, wealthy Nigerians, and their families enjoy all kinds of proteins in their sumptuous and mouthwatering meals that are the envy of the common man. A ban on pọnmọ as proposed by the government and announced cannot be fair or just. We completely reject it because it is ill-advised.
After the ban was announced, he suggested the government should be ready for a protracted court struggle.
“I will be willing to take on this public interest case on behalf of the millions of Nigerians who find this delicacy too delicious to remove from their dining tables, or better yet, dining floors. This is especially true given that it is still the only substance that is reasonably priced and resembles meat or fish in the meals of the average person. The wise need only hear one word, he continued.
