The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Farmers

  • Beans can be produced naturally without sniper, says farmer

    Mrs Bose Idowu, an agriprenuer at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, has assured farmers and citizens that producing, preserving beans can be natural without application of sniper.

    She made this known to Reporters on Monday in Ibadan.

    Idowu, who is a producer of beans, yam flour, plantain flour and local rice, said that she produced clean beans without preservatives.

    “Beans with weevils is an indication that the beans was not preserved with any sniper or chemicals, so people should not be losing interest in buying beans with weevils, they are even the best.

    “I buy at the right time when the farmers freshly harvest at the farm, after that I seal it properly in a purse bag developed by some scientists.

    “The purse has thick nylon inside and the regular sacks cover outside, once one can properly seal it and store well, it can last for six months to even one year.

    “My beans by God’s grace are still one of the cheapest and best in market because I get them directly from the farmers immediately after harvest, they are clean and well stored, ” she said.

    Idowu, the Chief Executive Officer of Gracevine Agribusiness Ltd., Ibadan, noted she was trained and empowered through IITA Youth Agriprenuer (IYA) Programme.

    Read Also: Olawepo-Hashim promises to tackle cancer

    “I joined agriprenuer programme in 2012 and was trained on soya bean, maize and cowpea productions, from the token received from IITA then I saved N500, 000 and started my own business.

    “Through the support of IITA and partners, the business scaled up, since 2016, I cultivated, produced and packaged no fewer than five hectares of cowpea monthly; now I have a factory to produce and sell cowpea.

    “My products are of high quality and the prizes are affordable,” she said.

    Idowu, a graduate of Animal Breeding and Genetics, added that her factory could produce 120 tonnes of yam flour in a month, but was limited due to lack of market.

    “From the N4 million that I received from IITA and donors, especially the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), I was able to buy all necessary equipment but the major challenge is that we lacked the market.

    “Also, the company is still waiting for NAFDAC accreditation having applied for a long time, if they accredit us and there is market, we will meet our capacity which will surely boost food production in Nigeria and Africa at large,” she said.

    She, however, maintained that beans could still be produced without preservatives while urging the farmers to follow due process of producing, preserving beans the natural way.

  • Celebs back farmers’ clamour to end empty political promises

    WITH the belief that traders and farmers formed over 75 per cent of real electorate development in the country, Nollywood stars Kanayo .O. Kanayo and Ebube Nwagbo, who were in Abuja on Monday for the ‘Farmers Manifesto and The Traders Charter of Demand Presentation’, have thrown their weight behind the farmers, who claim politicians have failed in their promises for the agricultural sector.

    The need to speak up is against the backdrop of the upcoming 2019 general elections and the certainty that politicians will come to solicit votes from members of the farmers’ association.

    Declaring her stand for the course, Nwagbo stated: “It was a great pleasure to be invited alongside my senior colleague and veteran @kanayo.o.kanayo to the public presentation of #the farmers manifesto and the trader’s charter of demand presentation to give our support and give a talk on it.

    “It was quite an eye opening one, and a cause that was much needed in the agricultural sector and Nigeria at large. It’s time for the politicians to be held accountable for all the promises made during elections. No more empty promises. It’s a known fact that the farmers and traders make up 75% of the electoral votes made during elections.

    “It’s also a known fact that the Nigerian agricultural sector is the second largest contributor to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP. But it’s a sector that needs not to be ignored anyway. It’s going to boost the economy situation in the most tremendous way ever if given the adequate requirements. Food security is the key in any nation and we all know that hunger is no respecter of man,” she further stressed.

    The President of National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS), Mr. Ken Ukaoha, added that several promises by politicians of a 24-hour power supply to help the optimal performance of businesses; free education at all level; good roads for harvested products to be conveyed from farms to markets; good health and better transportation system have all gone unfulfilled.

  • Flood sacks 35 Edo communities, kills six

    Flooding killed six people and sacked no fewer than 35 communities in the Esan South East Local Government Area of Edo this year.

    The Chairman of the council, Mr Victor Emuankhangbon, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Friday in Ubiaja, the headquarters of the council.

    He said that the flooding also affected many farm lands.

    Read Also: Sokoto rice farmers lose N27.5b to floods

    Emuankhangbon said that the flooding was severe at Ilushi and Ifeku Islands, lamenting that the development might result to food shortages.

    He, however, said that government was looking at ways to encourage dry season farming, to mitigate the effects of envisaged food shortages.

    According to him, the Federal Emergency Relief Management Agency and the Edo State Emergency Relief Management Agency have since provided assistance to people affected by the flooding.

    Emuankhagbon said that people affected by the flooding had started returning to their homes with the water level reducing in the flooded communities.

  • ‘Farmers must embrace technology’

    Government, private investors and farmers have been urged to embrace technology to boost agricultural produce for local consumption and for export.

    An entrepreneur and international scholar, Prof. Ndubuisi Ekekwe, stated this yesterday during the sixth Lagos International food and beverage trade fair tagged ’Food Security through Technology’.

    He said the time had come for Nigerian farmers to move away from traditional farming system to the modern trend where technological application is widely put into use.

    Prof. Ekekwe advised that the use of technology in farming sector would guide farmers through the process of efficient farming to reduce their loss during harvest.

    He however lamented that lack of formal education might pose challenges to most of the farmers to key into the process.

    According to him, the introduction of technology will make loans easily accessible to farmers because technological application will make the progress on farms available to government and private bodies charged with the responsibility of monitoring the use of the loans.

    Special Adviser to the Lagos state Governor on food security Ganiu Sanni Okanlawon, said Lagos was prepared to embrace technological innovations to make farming easier

    He added that a task force set up to ensure food consumed in the state were hygienic was doing well

  • Group advocates for more youth farmers

    Chairman and Chief Executive officer of Commonwealth Business Women Nigeria (CBWN), Afoma Adigwe has called on traditional rulers in various states to encourage more rural women and youths’ participation in farming.

    The appeal was made at a press briefing hosted by the organization to sensitize the public on the activities carried out by CBWN as it prepares for the Commonwealth African Forum to be held in Canada later this year.

    Adigwe stressed the important role to be played by agriculture industry in the future of the country and wants rural women to see farming as a business venture for self-reliance.

    While encouraging women and youth in farming, Adigwe also advocate for a specialized bank that will go to rural women farmers, find out their needs and help them access interest-free loans and other empowerment services. According to Adigwe agriculture is the new industry and Nigeria’s future and on our part CBWN intends establishing Farm gate Micro-Finance Bank, focused solely on rural women farmers. “And, as such banks do in other countries, we will go to these farmers to find out their needs and assist them; not them looking for us.”

    Adigwe, Founder of Uplifting Women Through Farming, UWTF, an NGO that is pioneering CBW Nigeria, also told newsmen that their focus on providing the rural women farmers with skills, especially in processing and packaging, informed the organization’s close relationship with traditional rulers.

    On the Commonwealth African Forum Canada 2018, Adigwe said CBWN is the Forum’s Country Focal Point, adding that CBW is endorsed by Queen Elizabeth II and recognized by 52 governments, exposes women to trade opportunities, multilateral trade missions, trade policy makers and $93 billion procurement tenders across 40 sectors, globally.

  • Farmers embrace biogas for electricity

    Some farmers are now looking up to biogas technology to transform animal and other wastes into power plants. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Hope for biogas power generation is high among farmers and innovators as it potentially solves the twin challenges of disposal of livestock waste and provision of energy to offset the rising cost of electricity.

    Biogas is a type of biofuel  produced from the decomposition of organic waste. Animal manure, food scraps, wastewater and sewage are examples of organic matter that can produce biogas.

    Mr.Adewale Zacchaeus, a small- scale farmer in Ibulesoro community in Ondo State, has every reason to smile. Two years ago, he had no light on his farm. Hence, he only sold his produce as he couldn’t  process because there was  no electricity: the village is not connected to the national grid. But his story is different today. He now generates renewable electricity from cow dung. All thanks to the Federal College of Agriculture (FECA), Akure, Ondo State and the West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme (WAAPP-Nigeria).

    While FECA used his place to demonstrate how to use cow dung to generate power with a modest biogas plant, WAAPP funded the project. So now, thanks to cow manure and biogas technology, he and his family not only have free, but sustainable power all year round.

    Ibulesoro community now uses animal wastes for electricity generation and cooking gas, courtesy of FECA and WAAPP.

    Cow dung is sourced from various farms close by. One cow can produce over 30 gallons of manure a day. Zacchaeus is happy he can enjoy electricity.

    Before the project, each day, Mrs Zacchaeus spent several hours collecting wood for cooking and heating water. The construction of a biogas plant at their home has transformed their lives. She has been freed from the daily drudgery and now has more time to spend on activities that generate income for the family. Her husband has become skilled at installing and maintaining the biogas plant, making him crucial for the development of other plants in the area.

    For FECA, turning cow manure into biogas is a boon to agriculture.

    By implementing the cow dung energy project for farmers, FECA Provost Dr  Samson Odedina said the school envisages a transformed agricultural industry that meets the needs of the rural and urban poor, small holder farmers, and provides transition to modernising agriculture.

    Odedina said energy is needed in all aspects of agricultural and food production, including processing, service provision, among others adding that such sustainable solutions, provide the key to improving energy ana reducing poverty among the rural poor.

    According to him, the college trains farmers and students to use biogas technology to generate methane gas from cow dung and transfers it into cooking fuel.

    In this regard, Zacchaeus, a beneficiary, is able to collect cow manure to power his home.

    The Provost is looking forward to a new revenue source and jobs to be created through the initiative. The construction cost of biogas power generation facility is N500,000.

    Despite biogas being more expensive than other forms of renewable energy, the farmers chose it because it provides them with a way to dispose of waste while generating power. Liquid biogas residues left after the fermentation process are also utilised as fertiliser.

    The Akure municipality ferments so much tonnes of cattle waste per day from the abattoir that can be collected by farmers.

    Another success story is in Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. There, an agricultural firm, Ajima Farms, has powered Rije Village in Kuje Area Council, with 20 kilowatts of biogas from generators. The project, called Ajima Farms Biogas Digester Off-Grid, was inaugurated by the United States African Development Foundation (USADF), led by its Regional Director, Tom Coogan, along with project coordinator, Ajima Farms, Fatima Ademoh, and Reji Village Head, Ibrahim Kuyagwa.

    Ajima Farms is the inaugural winner of the United States African Development Foundation (USADF) Off-Grid Energy Challenge, which was also conducted in eight other African countries. USADF gave a grant of $100,000 to Ajima Farms, and later expanded the funding with $50,000 for a second biogas project in Kuwizhi Village in the same area council of the FCT. Since 2013, USADF has funded over 70 entrepreneurs in nine countries, and has invested over $7.5 million in their enterprises.

    Ademoh said: “We own Ajima Farms and we were presented with two problems, which were agricultural wastes and surrounded by villages that are not connected to the national grid and could not access electricity. We looked on how we can solve these problems. “The wastes, as we looked at them, were not good for the health of the community, and the gas released by these wastes into the atmosphere is 24 times dangerous more than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. The project has three components, which are energy generation, clean gas cooking solution and energy efficiency. We have similar project at Kuwizhi with 10 kilowatts. “That gave birth to the biogas project here in Rije village of Kuje Area Council.

    This is to power the community. Currently, we gather waste from commercial farms around here and also get waste from the community, and the youth bring them on site. They secure and operate biogas generators. “There is a meter that regulates the consumption of power from the source of power supplied to consumers in the village through the pre-paid metering system we have, and is not the same with the power Distribution Companies.”

    According to her, currently 45 per cent of Nigerians are not connected to the national grid, which makes them to have concern with communities that do not have access to electricity, and added that biogas remains a clean form of energy, whereby the government could come up with Public Private Partnership (PPP), to deploy this energy at a larger scale.

    Team Lead, Zeta Prime Alternative Technologies, Miss Uzoma Eleke is developing innovative renewable energy technologies.

    In 2016, TOTAL Plc launched a competition called the Africa Startupper Challenge 2016 where some Nigerian innovators competed by showcasing their projects. 1,943 projects were submitted and evaluated out of which 3 were selected.The first runner up of Total Nigeria 2016 Startupper Challenge was Uzoma Eleke.  Her organisation is working on a prototype biogas project   that can used by farmers who are off grid.

    She has   successfully tested the first lab-scale prototype across major off grid communities in Kuje and Bwari Area Councils of Abuja.

    Uzoma explained that the pilot anaerobic digester will produce methane (biogas) from fermented organic waste (biomass). She sees an opportunity for the construction of a centralised biogas plant that will utilise available waste to produce energy and bio-fertiliser. She is determined to become an electricity producer powered by biogas.

    While most farmers would   embrace biogas as a way of cutting on the cost of fuel for domestic consumption, she noted that it is still expensive toacquire biogas digesters.

    Overhead costs although many of them still find the Sh100, 000 needed to install the units to be steep; they contend that what accrues from this renewable energy source is worth it in the long run.

    Across Africa, the biogas business is booming. Biogas is produced from large fermenting tank for corn, liquid manure and glycerin.

    Experts believe if well harnessed, Nigeria can realise at least N4.54 trillion yearly from biogas produced from organic waste processing.

    One of them is the Chief Executive Officer, Avenam Links International Limited, Mrs. Nina Ani.

    Mrs Ani said yearly agricultural, municipal, plant, sewage, green, food, and livestock wastes, among others, across the country, is estimated at 542.5 million tons and worth N4.54 trillion (or $29.29 billion).

    She said aside the monetary value, biogas as a renewable source of energy and cooking gas has positive long-term implications on human beings and their environment unlike the traditional fossil fuels.

    She identified governmental policy and funding as two major challenges inhibiting the right investments in biogas production.

  • Farmers donate N56m for Buhari’s nomination form

    •PDP jittery, says Oshiomhole

    RICE farmers under the aegis of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), have contributed about N56.8 million for the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    They promised to contribute weekly to fund the President’s campaign.

    The association told All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Comrade Adams Oshiomhole that its 12.2 million members across the country decided to buy the nomination form for the President, following his efforts to keep them busy on their farms with his agricultural policies.

    Addressing members of the association, Oshiomhole said it was evident that opposition parties, especially Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and their presidential aspirants were jittery ahead of the 2019 general election.

    He said with support from the farmers, it was evident that President Buhari had already won the election.

    Comrade Oshiomhole said PDP was jealous of the support being enjoyed by the President across the country, adding: “Our opponents are jittery. When faceless people contributed money for one of the aspirants in PDP, he looked at them and said ‘I have enough money to buy all of you’. He cried a little bit just for the effect.

    “Not a word was spoken in the media about the morality or the legality or illegality of it. I thought the media would ask what was the morality of those who had nothing, giving to the rich? When people decided to raise money to buy nomination form for our own President, who does not have money, suddenly it became an issue that why should people buy nomination forms for aspirants?

     

     

    “But let me say that we need Nigerians who are committed to policy stability and who believe in a candidate to raise fund not only for the form, but also for mass mobilisation.

    “In the case of President Buhari, he will even need more money because our party’s decision is that we have to organise direct primaries and we need money. But I am glad that it is the confidence Nigerians have in our President that is making groups to contribute money for his campaign.”

    The former Edo State Governor alleged how the PDP administration gave Nigerians poisonous rice when they were in power: “One of the scandals we had to deal with when I was the governor was when I had the honour to preside over a meeting of the governors and the former Customs Controller-General lamented how people they granted waiver to import rice exceeded the quota they were given and imported more rice into the country. He claimed that they defrauded the Federal Government about N22billion in waivers and in excess of what they brought in.

    “My quarrel with the PDP government, why today I celebrate the defeat of the PDP and I don’t hide it, those criminal act of poisonous rice being imported into Nigeria was done not through the back door.

    “We saw PDP ministers lamenting that the rice in our markets had expired and I asked, who elected them to lament? They allowed this expired rice into the country, they proceeded to grant them waivers, they exceed the waivers they were given. Even former President Goodluck Jonathan lamented they must recover the excess money from these farmers.

    “I said why lamentation. So, President Buhari has made a revolutionary intervention in the economic life of our country. And for me, I have always said, habits don’t change through persuasion.

    “There is no Nigerian living, who can go to our President and say, help me get waivers, let me bring in this prohibited items or please help me talk to CBN to remove rice importation from the prohibited list. That has been the strength of this government and this explains the courage of the CBN to remain faithful to those prohibited items.

    “Our President protested that the fee we are charging for our presidential form was too high. That it is beyond his income. We said well, there are real causes we intend to incur in conducting transparent primary election across the country and we have to pay for it. But I told him that sir, you have many admirers who will contribute the money.

    “So I am very excited about where we are. Those people who have milked Nigeria dry, who turned public policies upside down and revised them every other week, depending on who has connection to talk to, they mounted a lot of pressure on this government to revise the attempt to restrict and prohibit the importation of rice.

    “And to play back history, we have never been short of ideas. What has been lacking is the will to sustain what is right even in the face of some economic cockroaches that always manipulate the corridors of power, to compel administrations after administrations to abandon laudable projects,” he said.

    RIFAN National President Aminu Goronyo said the farmers bought a form for the President in appreciation of his efforts to improve farmers’ lives, especially rice farmers.

    He said before the Buhari administration, rice farmers could only produce two million metric tonnes of rice per annum, adding that at the moment, the farmers produced over 11 million metric tonnes annually.

     

     

  • Conflicting expectations (1)

    A bill to amend the Constitution to provide for state police scaled the first reading at the Senate on July 11. But is Nigeria ripe for it? Is state police the answer to the prevailing security challenges? Are there no chances that governors would abuse such an institution? These are some of the posers raised in this report by PRECIOUS IGBONWELUNDU.

    FROM Borno to Ebonyi, Zamfara to Cross River and Plateau to Benue, it has been an orgy of killings. There have been growing security concerns across the country with Nigerians wondering if it had become a slaughter slab. A day hardly passes without reports of killings arising from herdsmen-farmers conflicts, armed marauding terrorists, kidnappers, communal clashes, rivalries among politicians, sponsored assassinations and militancy, among others. The situation assumed a frightening dimension this year as reports indicate that no fewer than 1,500 persons have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced as a result of various crisis across the country. Amnesty International on July 1, posted on its official Twitter handle that 378 persons were killed between January and June in Benue, 340 in Plateau and 217 in Zamfara states. Aside the above, 20 persons were killed during the clash between Ukele and Izzi communities of Cross River and Ebonyi States. The list is endless.

    The nation’s security apparatus, particularly the police, charged with the responsibility to maintain public peace, order and protect lives and properties have not adequately responded to these issues, no thanks to insufficient manpower, equipment and logistics; such that, the military, whose primary function is to protect the nation from external aggressions, was drafted in and currently runs operations in 30 states of the federation.

    As of today, the police have a population of about 300,000 to secure almost 200 million Nigerians. More than 20 per cent of the service’s strength are guiding the rich and politically exposed persons (PEPs). By the United Nation’s benchmark, a police man is expected to watch over four persons. But that is not the case in Nigeria where one officer is saddled with the responsibility of looking after 600 citizens.

    That notwithstanding, this year’s Global Peace Index (GPI) ranked Nigeria 148th in peacefulness out of 163 countries surveyed. The survey measured three indices—level of safety and security in society; extent of domestic and international conflict, and the degree of militarisation.

    Rising cases of mindless murders and sacking of commuters have continued unabated with victims largely accusing the federal government controlled security agencies of conniving with killers, thus, reawakening the clamour for state police. The cries reached a crescendo with last month’s killing of over 200 people in Riyom, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, as well as the massacres recorded in Zamfara, Taraba, Nasarawa, Benue, Ebonyi, Cross River and Rivers states, among others. The National Assembly (NASS) was called upon to, without delay, begin the process for the establishment of state police by amending Sections 214 and 215 that stipulates the existence of only the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

    Heeding the call, the Senate asked its standing committee on Constitution Review to kick-start processes for a Bill to amend the Constitution for the establishment of state police. The House of Representatives’ Majority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, had earlier sponsored a bill to that effect.

     

    What the bill seeks to address

    The bill, if passed, would amend relevant sections of the constitution to allow for a decentralised Police Force. It seeks to establish the National Police Service Commission (NPSC), thereby, giving room for the creation of the federal and state police. Like in the judiciary, it implies that there would be a State Police Service Commission (SPSC), which would be vested with the powers to review the activities of the state police bi-annually, recommend the appointment of a Commissioner of Police (CP), Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) to the NPSC in addition to appointment, discipline, and removal of members of the state police below the rank of ACP.

    The proposed law indicates that whereas the CP of a state may be removed on the grounds of misconduct, serious breach of policing standards, conviction by a court of law or tribunal, indictment by a judicial body or tribunal for corruption, participation in political activities, among others, such removal must be approved by two-thirds majority of the State House of Assembly.

    It provided details of the composition of the NPSC, indicating that it shall comprise a chairman, representatives of the National Human Rights Commission, Public Complaints Commission, Labour, Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), and the Attorney-General of each state. The commission shall also have six retired police officers not below the rank of Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), and all members must be confirmed by the Senate.

    For the SPSC, the bill stated that it shall comprise a representative of the federal government appointed by the NPSC, two members to be appointed by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), who must be indigenes of the respective states, a representative of the Public Complaints Commission (PCC), one representative each from Labour Union, appointed by the chairman of the state chapter, NBA and NUJ.

    Others include three retired police officers to be appointed by the governor from the three senatorial districts and the commission’s chairman who must all be confirmed by the State House of Assembly.

    It stated thus: “The Federal Police shall be responsible for the maintenance of public security, preservation of public order and security of persons and property throughout the federation. The appointment of the Commissioner of Police of a state shall be by the Governor on the advice of the National Police Service Commission and subject to confirmation of the House of Assembly.

    “The term of office of the Commissioner of Police shall be for a period of five years only or until he attains a retirement age prescribed by law, whichever is earlier. The Governor or such other Commissioner of the Government of the State as he may authorise in that behalf may give to the Commissioner of Police such lawful directions with respect to the maintenance and securing of public safety and public order as he may consider necessary, and the Commissioner of Police shall comply with those directions or cause them to be complied with.

    “Provided that where the Commissioner of Police feels that any order given under this subsection is unlawful or contradicts general policing standards or practice, he may request that the matter be referred to the State Police Service Commission for review and the decision of the State Police Service Commission shall be final. prescribe a bi-annual certification review of the activities of State Police by the National Police Service Commission to ensure they meet up with approved national standards and guidelines of policing and their operations do not undermine national integrity, promote ethnic, tribal or sectional agenda or marginalize any segment of the society within the state.”

    The National Police Service Commission,  according to the bill, shall be responsible for the appointment of persons to offices (other than the office of the Inspector-General of Police) in the Federal Police Service; exercising disciplinary control over members of the Federal Police; recommend to the Governor of a State the appointment, discipline or removal of the CP, DCP and ACP of State Police, as well as supervise the activities of Federal and State Police, prescribe standards for all police forces in the country in training, criminal intelligence databases, forensic laboratories, and render assistance to the State Police in areas as may be requested by such State Police.”

    However, the issue has remained controversial with proponents and critics making valid points to support their arguments.

     

    The case against state police

    In August last year, the Inspector-General of Police (IG) Ibrahim Idris; Chairman, Police Service Commission (PSC) Musiliu Smith and former IG Sunday Ehindero were at a function in Lagos where they all spoke against the creation of state police.

    Their argument was that the country was not ripe for it and therefore, should concern itself more with ensuring adequate funding for the police. The security chiefs were also of the view that the police had tried the concept in the 1980s and early 1990s without success.

    To them, the concept failed when it deployed officers from the rank of Deputy Superintendent (DSP) and below to their respective local governments but they were caught between performing their constitutional roles and aiding their kinsmen who found themselves in one criminal situation or the other. They were of the view that a Security Trust Fund like that of Lagos, be established at the national level as to cater for funding, manpower, technological and scientific support, among others currently plaguing the force.

    Idris had said: “The police need the collaboration and synergy of the community where they are to effectively deal with crime in the policing space. We need the populace to give us information, intelligence and other supports in this crime fighting efforts. The police under my watch is committed to defeating all security challenges confronting our dear country, Nigeria.

    “We need the support of all Nigerians. We need more funding, we need manpower and we need technology and scientific support. Police officers and men need motivation, welfare and incentives to tackle bandits. We must eventually win the battle with your support and collaborative efforts and synergy.”

    Critics of the establishment of state police believe the concept is good but the timing is wrong. To them, it would become a ready tool in the hands of intolerant governors against their perceived enemies or opponents. They are also of the view that the country should focus on strengthening the existing police structure through capacity building, equipment, motivation and the freedom to function professionally, rather than duplicate 36 miniatures of a dysfunctional service, which would amount to more problems.

    They believe the way out would be to identify the problems of the Nigeria Police, such as “what is it that makes the police ineffective? Why are they not delivering on their mandate? Are they adequately trained? Do they have the required tools to function? Are they trained for purpose? Is the institutional structure right and do they have the guidelines for that function?” asked a Nigerian Air Force retired Wing Commander.

    He continued: “Let us assume the answers to these questions are no. Then, we have to look at how to solve them to make the police more efficient. How do we improve on their training? It is not about bringing state or community policing. If you like, make it house policing, that is for an individual to police his own house, if the requisite training is not given, that person would fail.

    “Until we solve the issue of capacity, structure, funding and governance of the police, we will not make a headway. We would have the same issues again and, this time, it will not be just one police force but 36 other police structures, and the problem would be compounded.

    Similarly, senior lawyer, Sylva Ogwemoh (SAN) said he does not subscribe to the creation of state police in the country because it would not provide the needed solution. He believes the important factor was to build institutions and develop processes in the conduct of our affairs.

    He said: “A crude governor will see the state police as a tool for dealing with political opponents and perceived enemies of his government. There is no doubt that the Nigeria Police of today does not have the required manpower, equipment and appropriate training to deal with organised crime in Nigeria. This is where the problem lies.

    “The police must be well equipped and the right physical, mental and psychological training provided to the officers to enable them effectively deal with our security problems. Until this is done, a resort to creation of state police will amount to a waste of precious time. God help Nigeria.”

    Former Minister of State, Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, shared a similar view using the July 14 elections in Ekiti State as a reference point. As beautiful as the idea is, Obanikoro said, creating state police would be the first step to Nigeria’s disintegration.

    He said: “The truth is that we are not matured enough to run state police. Look at the mismanagement of powers at the state level concerning local government elections and administration. The rate of human right abuses will go through the roof, particularly where political opponents are prominent in terms of grassroots support. We should do community policing and restructure the police command to give more control to state governors. Promotion and dismissal should have state governors’ input.

    “Imagine Ekiti with state police and what the federal police did to him (Fayose) during the last election. Granting state police will be the first step towards the disintegration of Nigeria. This is not an isolated situation. Rather, it is the norm under every administration in Nigeria.

    “The present police structure should not stand but it can be modified to create opportunities for the states to have a say in the recruitments and control. Therefore, there is need for radical police reform.”

    Despite the failings of the police, legal luminary, Dele Belgore, SAN, argued that decentralising the police is not the most important thing at the moment.

    He said: “The Nigeria Police Force today is a badly demoralised service and does not command the respect of Nigerians. If the Police Force is not properly repositioned through good training, orientation and improved conditions of service, creation of state police would merely localise the existing decay and the consequences could be more oppressive on the populace.

    “However, if there is genuine desire to reform the police, a decentralised Force would be easier to manage and can be made more effective. But creation of state police is simply for the sake of giving more powers and control to governors. That’s a recipe for disaster.

     

  • Yobe farmers optimistic of bumper harvests

    Some farmers in Yobe have expressed optimism about the probability of recording bumper harvests this year.

    They made their feelings known in an interview with a Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria in Damaturu on Monday, just as they commence harvesting of their produce.

    Malam Abba Umar, a farmer in Damaturu, said that he had started harvesting, alongside other farmers at Sindiri village in the state.

    “Some of us who commenced planting earlier than others are now harvesting, while those who planted late will wait a little while.

    “The yields from the ongoing harvests are quite promising and unlike what happened last year, we are all celebrating,” he said.

    Modu Mustapha, a civil servant who engages in subsistence farming in Katarko village, Yobe, said that the rains had been steady and good for the crops.

    “The rain this year has been steady, unlike last year when most farms dried up because it stopped abruptly without the grains maturing.

    “Last year, it was very bad for beans and groundnut farmers, as they recorded poor yield, but the signs are better this year,” he said.

    Mustapha, however, appealed to the state government to provide farm inputs to farmers in good time, to boost production.

    Kolo Gaji, another farmer based in Dapchi town of Bursari Local Government Area of the state, said that the steady rains had protected the crops from the menace of pests and insects.

    “When the rain is low, as was the case last year, the pests fed on the crops and this resulted in poor harvests, but the steady rain this year has kept the pests away, and we are expecting very good harvests,” he said.

    NAN reports that millet, sorghum, rice, beans, groundnut and sesame seeds are the common crops cultivated across the state.

  • Farmers, groups urge action on climate friendly farming

    Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), and Ibarapa Northeast Local Government Development Association have called on the government to intensify action on climate-friendly measures to boost agriculture.

    The pleas were made during an awareness and sensitisation rally organised by JDPC of the Catholic Archdiocese of Ibadan in collaboration with Ibarapa Northeast LCDA.

    The event highlighted the need for investments in agricultural research, grower technical assistance and financial incentives to support agricultural solutions to climate change.

    Addressing representatives of the communities at the council secretariat, the Acting Head of Programme, Integrated Development Programme, JDPC Ibadan, Mrs Olorode Bolanle, pointed out that climate change has caused unprecedented impact on agriculture.

    The effect, she explained, included irregular rainfall pattern, flooding, disruption on planting seasons and livestock production.

    Other consequences, she added,   were threats to food security, environmental degradation among many others.

    She stressed that the livelihoods of farmers and ranchers are, intimately, tied to weather and the environment. But they may not be able to adapt to climate change as they face extreme swings in temperature and precipitation.

    According to her, the sector needs solutions to bring food security, jobs, improved air and water quality, and healthy communities.

    Given the scope of the problem, she said the search for novel ways to adapt to a changing climate should drive agricultural research.

    She called for support to encourage widespread transition to sustainable agricultural systems that are increasingly resilient, environmentally sound and healthy, and that provide climate benefits, protect natural resources, sustain food security and provide for economically vibrant agricultural communities.

    Ibarapa Northeast LCDA  Chairman, Hon. Yunus Olaosegba, lauded farmers for  ensuring Nigeria is food secure.

    He enjoined them to imbibe the culture of planting new trees in replacement for every tree that is cut to ensure environmental sustainability.