The Nation Newspaper

Tag: President Muhammadu Buhari

  • Activists: don’t make Akpabio minister

    A group of political activists in Akwa Ibom State, Ibom Integrity and Servant Leadership Initiative, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari not to consider Senator Godswill Akpabio for a ministerial appointment as he prepares to set up his second term cabinet.

    In a letter: ‘’Why Appointing Akpabio May Be Counter-productive”, signed by its National Coordinator, Dr Asuquo Edidem Etim, the group accused Akpabio of having ‘the propensity for “mischief, treachery, flippancy, pettiness and mindless profligacy.”

    But Special Assistant to the Senator on Media Mr Anietie Okon described the group as ‘faceless.’

    Okon said the group was unknown in the state, adding that responding to its petition ‘’would amount to according legitimacy to a faceless group.’’

    The letter reads: “His corruption case with the EFCC has the potential of exploding into national embarrassment and credibility question for your government, should he be made a minister in a government that prides itself as anti-graft champion. We wish to remind you of your famous words, that ‘if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill us.

    “Many had thought that his joining APC would bring cool breeze of good fortunes to the party in the state, but rather, his highhanded nature and disrespect for internal democracy … became a raging storm that uprooted the recognised structures of the party … This overwhelming attitude, sadly, affected the chances of our governorship candidate, Obong Nsima Ekere (ONE).

    “Akwa Ibom State has several other eminent persons… just as Chief Udoma Udoma, minister of Budget and National Planning, has done creditably … And in terms of loyalty to the party and contributions to its development in the state, we have credible people, including Chief Umana Umana and Senator John Udoedehe, among others …

    “Akpabio has become very desperate for a fresh political power from the back door of ministerial appointment, which we fear he may use with vengeance against us…

    READ ALSO: PDP, Akpabio disagree on expulsion from party

    “His notoriety for flippancy is well known…For instance, he has started … boasting that Mr President is even begging me to accept a ministerial position.”

    The letter added: “And we believe that he needs a period of catharsis…to reflect and purge himself of bottled up negative emotions. And you can help him achieve that. You already have enough security challenges on your hands…”

    The group, which described itself as “core believers in Mr President’s leadership philosophy …” said the state must help “our leader achieve enhanced performance in his second and final term …”

    It added that Buhari’s second coming “comes with higher expectations and bigger responsibilities…’’ as “all eyes will be on you and your government… to see how you will translate your Next Level programme … to the reality of the genuine positive impact that would leave Nigeria better than you met it.’’

    “Especially in your patriotic desire to decisively tackle insecurity … revive the economy and create jobs…

    “But we caution that to achieve these objectives…the nation needs an atmosphere of peace and you and your government deserve an environment devoid of unnecessary distractions, irritations, rancour and bickering…

    “And the choice of personnel you recruit … would be a huge factor. Note that the few controversies around your government in the first term were actually as a result of the unethical or insensitive actions of some of your appointees whose conduct were contrary to your …discipline and conservative nature,” the group said.

  • Breaking: Buhari set to sign 2019 budget into law

    President Muhammadu Buhari is billed to sign the 2019 Appropriation bill this morning.

    The signing ceremony is expected to take place at the President’s office around 11am.

    Already at the Presidential Villa for the ceremony are the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Danjuma Goje, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, the Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly matters, Ita Enang.

    Read Also: Abuja wears new look for Buhari’s inauguration

    Also at the ceremony are the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefuele, Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

  • Second term: Buhari must deliver on APC’s three-point agenda -Olatujoye

    Prince Anthony Olatujoye, frontline legal practitioner and public analyst, retired from the Central Bank of Nigeria as Legal Adviser/Director Legal Services. He is currently the Managing Partner, Difgland Partners, a law firm based in Abuja. In this interview with Assistant Editor, ‘Dare Odufowokan, he urged President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress to deliver on the three-point agenda which formed the fulcrum of their campaigns during the 2019 General Elections. Excerpts

    President Muhammadu Buhari will be sworn in for a fresh term of four years next week. What areas of governance would you want to see him give more attention to as he resumes a new term in office?

    President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC have a three-point agenda which formed the fulcrum of their campaigns during the 2019 elections, namely: security, economy and the anti-corruption crusade. The President needs to employ the best possible characters, resources and personnel to achieve the goals set out for himself in these three cardinal areas during his second term in office. Specifically, on job creation, I will suggest that the Federal Government should expand the ANCHOR Borrower Program of the CBN to the textile industry to accommodate cotton farmers in order to boost the cotton industry with a view to discouraging importation of textile materials into Nigeria.

    Again, the TraderMoni, and MarketMoni program which is being implemented by the Bank of Industry (BOI) should be improved upon and expanded so as to remove the notion that it was a mere electioneering ploy to win the presidential election. Let me add that the School Feeding Programme of the Federal Government should also be made to cover all parts of the country to enable every state to benefit from it. Furthermore, the President should improve the educational and health sectors with a view to bringing them at par with what obtains in developed countries.

    Again the “Executive Order 007” signed by the President on the 25th January 2019 and designed to improve infrastructure throughout Nigeria by which six (6) manufacturing and construction firms identified to handle nineteen (19) road projects in all the geo-political zones of the country should be followed to the letter.

    Nigerians are also warning the President against delaying the formation of his new cabinet. Do you share this concern?

    I absolutely agree with the call for promptness in the formation of the next Federal Executive Council (FEC). As a sitting President, he has all the resources to assemble the best hands, during his second term. And I salute him for his decision to form an all-inclusive government with a proviso that appointment of ministers will be based on merit. Nigeria is yearning for the actualisation of Mr. President’s promise. There is no gain for the country if the formation of the cabinet is unnecessarily delayed and I am optimistic that President Buhari is going to be as fast as possible in unveiling the men and women who will work with him this time around.

    The President reportedly told Nigerians shortly after he was declared the winner of the 2019 Presidential Elections that the next four years will be tough and his remarks have been subjected to different interpretations. What’s your view on President Buhari’s statement?

    I have no serious issue with the statement of the President as things are already tough in Nigeria. So, he may need to adopt a tough stance in putting to bed the socio, economic  political challenges bedeviling our nation. The next level should be seen as an approach needed to solve the embarrassing challenges of security, corruption, poverty/hunger, religious bigotry, economic issues, et al. Indeed, the issues on ground may require a stern approach, especially as regards economic reform, restructuring and good governance. It is on this score that I humbly suggest that the Nasir el Rufai Panel’s report on restructuring should be considered in order for the president to leave a good legacy at the end of his tenure in 2023.

    I believe the implementation of El-Rufai’s panel report will provide solutions to series of socio-economic challenges currently facing the country, including the insecurity and the killings being experienced in some parts of the country.

    The 2019 General Elections have come and gone. Would you want to assess the performance of INEC in the conduct of the elections nationwide?

    My position is that INEC has marginally improved on the 2015 elections. Although there were skirmishes in some parts of the South-South and a few other states, particularly the unfortunate killing of a House of Representatives member at Ibadan in Oyo State, it is noteworthy that during the 2019 elections, opposition parties won some states generally regarded as the strongholds of the ruling party without the usual do or die approach associated with previous administrations. Overall, the conduct and outcome of the 2019 elections revealed what I would call “work in progress” in view of some setbacks which I believe the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill of 2018 will, when passed into law, undoubtedly address at future elections.

    As earlier stated, there were skirmishes in the South-South and a few states but such acts of brigandage were not as high as being suggested by some people. However, there is a need to curb such unfortunate acts in future elections. It is suggested that INEC and the government at all levels should adopt more proactive means of preventing such avoidable fatalities by putting in place well-trained, incorruptible security agents to provide adequate security at poling units throughout the country. Finally, Nigerian voters, politicians and other stakeholders must demonstrate a high sense of responsibility if we must match advanced democracies in election matters.

    The result of the election should be seen as the wish of Nigerians. It is normal that where two or more people contest an election, only one person is bound to win. When put in context, the presidential election has been won and lost, the winner being the incumbent president, INEC’s position on the issue, inures until and unless the court decides otherwise. I hasten to add that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is seen to have performed reasonably well at the elections, even as he lost by a margin of almost 4 million votes. He gave a good account of himself at the presidential election. As it is, the outcome of the presidential election is now being contested in court, so I won’t want to say too much.

    Do you think Atiku and PDP’s decision to challenge Buhari and the APC’s victory in court is a good move?

    Under the relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and the Electoral Act of 2010 (as Amended), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has the right to seek redress in court if he perceives any infraction of the electoral law and process during the election which affected his rights. However, I believe Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (or the PDP) does not need any further advice having filed a petition before a Presidential Election Tribunal.

  • Buhari commissions Cargo Airport in Imo

    President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, commissioned the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport.

    The President affirmed that the facilities at the Airport are World Class, which he said the nation ought to be proud of.

    President Buhari, who was represented by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo stated that the International Cargo airport will not only open Imo State to International Commerce but would also provide opportunities for the people.

    According to him, “our focus has always been on job creation and I want to thank Governor Okorocha for consistently supporting the Federal Government in its job creation programme”.

    According to the President, “the International Cargo Airport will certainly create more job opportunities apart from the commerce it brings to the Southeast part of our country, but to other parts of the country as well. What we are seeing here is a landmark achievement I had a previous opportunity to inspect the warehouses of the Cargo terminal a couple of months ago, even that time it struck me as a world-class facility which all of us as Nigerians ought to be proud of.

    He added, “everybody complains about the slow process of clearing goods at the ports. This is a welcome circle that will make it easier for people to clear their goods and speed up commerce all over the Country. Congratulations Mr. governor, I know that for Imo State, this is only the beginning in seeing that all your dreams come true. This Sam Mbakwe International Cargo airport will bring a lot of progress to Imo State and Southeast region of our Country and posterity will remember you for this”.

    While Commissioning the new Prisons Headquarters Prof. Osinbajo said “Let me say on behalf of the president General Muhammadu Buhari that I am here to Commission the Nigerian Prisons Owerri. I congratulate Governor Okorocha for his support to the Federal Government of Nigeria in their efforts in handling the criminal Justice System. Your role as Chief Security Officer speaks for itself. You have done well”.

    Read Also: How we spent $22.2m Abacha loot, by FG

    Governor Rochas Okorocha in his speech stated that “Let me start by thanking Mr. President for giving approval for Imo State Government to build this Federal establishment. The idea of this project came to us as a welcome development, considering the fact that Igbos especially Imo people, their entire life rotates around commerce and commercial activities. Most of the people that make up Lagos as it concerns importation are Igbos. So we decided to bring it back home for them by building this International Cargo Airport.

    “Again, it is important I inform you that this airport was built by the sweat of Imo people. There was never a time that the Federal Government built it for them. Today, we are adding another dimension to it by making it an International Cargo Airport. When you Commission it today, it now means that Imo State is now linked to the rest of the world. You may not need to go to Abuja, Lagos, China, or London or anywhere in the world to clear goods. This will equally create Job Opportunities for our people who have been longing for things like this. Very importantly Mr. President, it is important to note that this project was funded 100% by Imo State Government, in order words we are asking for refund as soon as possible”.

    Aside the International Cargo Airport, other projects executed by the governor were also commissioned by the Vice-President on behalf of the President including the Ultra-modern Police Headquarters, Prisons Headquarters, Free Mother & Child Hospital, Rochas Foundation Road, Somto Hospital among others.

    It should be recalled that the Vice-President was in the State last week to commission projects.

  • Buhari shocked by Katsina killings

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday received reports of killings in Katsina State with shock, assuring government will restore peace and stability in the polity.

    The President directed Acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar Adamu and Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin to constitute an assessment team to intervene immediately in the state and bring a feedback.

    President Buhari, according to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, also specifically instructed the security chiefs to find out how the operation was carried out by the perpetrators, not minding the Holy month of Ramadan and put in place structures to prevent future occurrence.

    Read Also: Buhari directs Ministers to hand over by May 28

    The President, who has been briefed on the criminal and political intents of the attacks in Katsina and other parts of the North, described the carnage as senseless.

    He admonished that all those instigating violence in the North and other parts of the country will be exposed and made to face the wrath of the law.

    The President commiserated with the Governor and people of Katsina State over the losses.

    He prayed that Allah will comfort those who have lost loved ones.

  • Breaking: Buhari returns to Abuja

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday evening returned to Abuja from Saudi Arabia.

    His plane touched down around 6:30 pm at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

    Top government officials were on ground to receive him at the airport.

    The President had left Nigeria last Thursday to Saudi Arabia to perform the Muslim Umrah.

    The visit was also to honour the invitation from King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, the ruler of Saudi Arabia and Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to perform the Umrah.

    He was accompanied by his close personal aides to the Umrah.

    Read Also: Buhari, Tinubu meet in Saudi Arabia

    The President is expected to preside over the valedictory session of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday.

    The session is the last meeting the President will be having with members of the outgoing cabinet as his second term is scheduled to be inaugurated on the 29th of May 2019.

    While some members of the outgoing cabinet may be reappointed, others will give way for fresh hands in the next dispensation.

  • Imo announces postponement of Buhari’s visit

    Imo Government has announced a postponement of the planned working visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the state.

    The postponement was contained in a statement issued in Owerri on Tuesday by Mr Sam Onwuemeodo, the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Rochas Okorocha.

    Onwuemeodo said that the visit earlier slated for Tuesday was postponed because of the president’s holy pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

    Read Also: Buhari, Tinubu meet in Saudi Arabia

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the president was scheduled to visit Imo to commission some key projects executed by Okorocha’s administration.

    Onwuemeodo, who pleaded for people’s understanding over the postponement, said, “we regret the inconvenience that this development might have caused.”

    He said that a new date would be announced upon the president’s return to Nigeria.

  • On Emiefele’s second term

    A few weeks ago, news suddenly broke of how President Muhammadu Buhari had sacked the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele. He was said to have been directed to proceed on his terminal leave as the nation’s number one banker by a letter from the president, thus, ending his one-term stint with the apex bank, abruptly.

    But that was not the case. It took bank’s Director of Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor, to pour ice on the already burning story, when he told the first person that bothered to get to him for clarification that – The governor was in his office, working.

    For the period the report lasted before it was debunked, the entire social media space, had caught the bug. Opinions and commentaries became as diverse and divergent as those making them, bordering in the main, on the ethnic, political and religious fault lines in the country.

    The speculation that Buhari intended to replace Emiefele with a northerner, once again, opened a floodgate of verbal war, laced with all manner of primordial arguments between known social media warlords.

    As usual, the discourse was bereft of the nuances of job proficiency or lack of it, of the CBN boss, but heavily-decked with the usual invectives, curses, hate-speech and all that have become major character of the vital social marketplace.

    It is against this backdrop that Buhari’s re-appointment the CBN governor for a second term, assumes its current meaning. Today, he holds the record of being the only person so honoured since Nigeria returned to independence in 1999.

    Ordinarily, commentators and observers ought to be examining the development purely on the template of competency and performance. But these are no ordinary times. Thus, the motive of the president’s action is as important as the impetus of the decision.

    No doubt, the president has killed the axiomatic two birds with a stone. On the one hand, he has been able to deliver a major political masterstroke and on the other entrench a new order that would certainly be critical to the economic performance of his government in the next four years and even beyond.

    It is no hidden fact that whatever achievements Buhari’s government lays claims to in terms of managing the economy since his coming, in 2015, is attributable to the apex bank.

    Today, rice production, has become the pride of the Buhari government, following the policy of diversification into agriculture as the major strategy for jolting Nigeria’s economy back to buoyancy. A major factor of that rice revolution, which the government never fails to tell anybody who cares to listen had led to 90 per cent of the rice consumed in the country, being grown locally, is Emefiele’s CBN. Through the bank’s Anchor Borrowers Programme, thousands of Nigerian peasant farmers are said to have accessed from the billions of Naira the scheme provides for massive rice production, which led to the present feat.

    Indeed, never given to whimsicality, Emefiele, since his appointment in 2014, had remained dogged in pursuing policies geared towards stabilising the economy and growing it with a rare single-mindedness and unwavering character.

    Even when many Nigerians went into a panic mode as the economy appeared to be collapsing due to the crazy rise in the cost foreign currencies, and other tell-tale signs of economic woes, Emiefele maintained a sober and constructive mien, an attitude, which obviously came handy in arresting and stabilising the situation, such that from the almost N600 exchanged for a dollar, the rate crashed and has remained stable at about N360.

    That the CBN governor was able to save Buhari that nightmare in the parlous foreign exchange macabre dance is probably what the president could not forget in a hurry.

    Many analysts also point to how he pulled the country out of a debilitating recession, occasioned by poor earnings from oil, managed and got it delisted from the JP Morgan Bond Index, as well as raised its foreign exchange reserves from about $23 billion in October 2016 to nearly $48 billion in June 2018.

    Despite pressure, Emefiele has remained steadfast in the putting 41 items out of reach for importation into the country despite taking all the flacks and arrows from some importers and stakeholders, thus bringing down Nigeria’s import portfolio from $665 million to $160 million, thereby restoring its current account to a surplus.

    Another signature achievement which may not be forgotten in a hurry is the signing, in May, 2018, of the historic $2.5billion currency swap agreement between the CBN and the Peoples Bank of China (PBoC), a deal, said to have been reached, after over two years of “painstaking negotiations,” between the two countries.

    Part of the benefits of the transaction, which is valued at Renminbi (RMB) 16 billion, or the equivalent of about $2.5billion, according to Okorafor, is to provide adequate local currency liquidity to Nigerian and Chinese industrialists and other businesses, thereby reducing the difficulties encountered in the search for third currencies.

    The deal, is principally to provide Naira liquidity to Chinese businesses and provide RMB liquidity to Nigerian businesses respectively, thereby improving the speed, convenience and volume of transactions between the two countries, he said, adding that it would also assist both countries in their foreign exchange reserves management, enhance financial stability, and promote broader economic cooperation between the two countries.

    Unlike his two predecessors who had courted some controversies, there are none associated with Emefiele for now. While Chukwuma Soludo, in his days, was accused of unduly hobnobbing with some bank executives, he was supposed to be checkmating their activities, thus, loosening his grip on some strict guidelines, which encouraged them to err, Lamido Sanusi, his immediate predecessor, was accused of unduly dabbling into external issues outside his brief, which drew unnecessary controversies that were injurious to the operations of the apex bank.

    But none of these wrong character traits have been associated with Emefiele. Instead, the 57-year-old former Managing Director of Zenith Bank and the 12th CBN Governor, has remained largely the reclusive, conservative and reserved, rather than a flamboyant, impetuous and showy character, whose public and even private activities, attract controversies.

    To many observers, the renewal of Emifiele’s appointment is surprising considering the allegations against Buhari. Few people believe the office would be returning to the South no matter Emefiele’s performance. Hence many Nigerians, including Reno Omokri, a known critic of the president, have filed out to praise him on the move.

    While some take the purely performance angle and therefore hail it for rewarding merit, others see it from the purely political angle. Instructively, Buhari had immediately winning his re-election in February, promised Nigeria an inclusive government in his second term. Is this the first step? 

    • Igboanugo, a journalist, wrote from Abuja.

  • ICT and the poverty question

    Sir: If there is one thing deemed worthy of  commendation by a great number of  President Muhammadu Buhari’s followers in spite of his perceived cracked veneer of integrity in some quarters, it is saying the truth about the state of the nation, even when it is self-indicting regardless of the feeble attempts by his spin doctors to murder and bury truth.

    Buhari had on Monday last week lamented the degree of grinding poverty in Nigeria, stating that the elite, including himself had failed to put certain programmes that could guarantee basic education for all irrespective of their level of poverty.

    It was not his first moment of uncomfortable truth. In December 2018, Buhari informed Nigerian governors that the economy was in a bad shape, charging them to come together, think and rethink on the way forward at a time his handlers were busy reeling out “impressive” statistics about how well the economy was doing.

    Indeed, poverty crawls on all fours here. Also, it is hard to contest the fact that there is a wide gulf between our current economic realities and where we ought to be as a country. Ours is a classic case of a people surrounded by drinkable water but still thirst.

    Despite our enormous endowments, Nigeria’s economy has remained petro-centric for decades, leaving  the agriculture and solid minerals sectors, which were hitherto the mainstay of the economy sidelined and locking up the opportunities they can provide to better the lives of Nigerians.

    Beyond the lamentation about an economy in a tailspin and the heavy concentration of the wretched of the earth in the most populous black country in the world, the current government must demonstrate the political will to transform Nigeria from a mono-cultural economy to a truly heterogeneous economy by developing the right strategy to boost the revenues generated from other sectors of the economy, creating new avenues for economic growth and providing opportunities to liberate a good number of Nigerians from the dark cell of  poverty. Dishing out handouts will not cut it.

    It is true that the current government has shown some commitment in its drive to revive the agriculture sector but it can do more. With the advancement in technology changing the way we live and the black gold gradually losing its relevance, there cannot be a more auspicious time than now to invest heavily in Information and Communications Technology (ICT)  to lift Nigerians  out of poverty and change the sad narrative associated with our economy.

    Today, the first five most capitalised companies in the world – Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook- are technology companies. The African continent is the next frontier in terms of market size and opportunities. But the full potentials of the continent have not been deployed in terms of its ability to leapfrog ICT capabilities.

    Truth be told, a lot of state actors are still oblivious of the capabilities of ICT. It is evident in the paltry investment in ICT infrastructure. With a population of almost 200 million people and broadband penetration of about 33 percent, opportunities for investment, innovation and growth abound in the ICT sector.

    The growth of ICT and its contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) can be increased if there is a realisation by the Nigerian government and other African governments that every 10 percent growth in broadband penetration leads to 1.38 percent growth in GDP and also reduces youth unemployment.

    It is time and Nigeria and other African countries removed their economies from being heavily dependent on export of oil and raw materials. We can draw inspiration from the Indian model and how the ICT industry has developed into a $100 billion industry per annum for that country.

    Nigeria can borrow a leaf from countries with a digital focus like Rwanda, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa. In Rwanda, for instance, President Paul Kagame is directly promoting the digital growth of the country, especially broadband. Government policies to promote the technology and communications sector are also stimulating entrepreneurial creativity and growth across the economy.

    The earlier we realise that the fastest way to lift our economy and our compatriots out of poverty is to embrace ICT, the better for all of us. We must begin to develop local capacities and come up with innovations to solve problems around the world. 

    • Ladesope Ladelokun,

     ladesopeladelokun@gmail.com

  • Kalu distributes palm seedlings to farmers

    In line with the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration’s economy diversification policy, former Governor of Abia State and senator-elect for Abia North Senatorial District, Orji Uzor Kalu has flagged off the distribution of 450,000 free oil palm seedlings to farmers.

    The aim of the gesture, The Nation gathered, was to revive, boost and reinvigorate the agricultural sector in the state and Nigeria as a whole.

    The palm seedlings distribution is one of the empowerment programmes introduced by the Orji Kalu Foundation to bring back the glorious days of high palm oil production and to boost the economies of families in the state.

    Announcing the flag-off of the programme at his Igbere country home in Bende Local Government Area of the state, Kalu, founder and facilitator of the foundation, said that the programme is aimed at refocusing the communities and families back to what will yield income for them.

    Kalu disclosed that the programme is centred on empowering families and not any single individual.

    He said that the process of selecting beneficiaries would not be based on political affiliation.

    Read Also: Kalu calls for sanctions against S’East APC leaders

    “It has always been in our minds to get our communities back [back on track] with agricultural programmes that will yield income for them. There’s this push among people to migrate from rural areas to Abuja and Lagos and knowing how resourceful Palm is, we decided to refocus their minds on it as a way of deriving revenue.

    “We have been planning this since the past one year. I’m sure you saw that we have about 450,000 palm seedlings open for distribution in Abia.

    “This is the easiest way of bringing back this rich economic tree that has made much economic impact in the past.

    “I’m sure many people will be satisfied with the direction we are heading towards which I believe is the right direction. Many lands are laying fallow and used for nothing.

    “That’s why we noticed that most reasonable thing to do is to educate our people that we can put them into use. The Federal government and President Buhari himself has being saying it that we should do this,” he said.

    Speaking of the benefits of the programme, Kalu said, “This programme will benefit families because we are going to share the seedlings among all families.

    “We want to make our people to create family plantations. The plan is huge. It’s not going to be an individual affair. This project is aimed at reinvigorating what used to be our major source of income.

    “And we will be able to put back families to be busy positively and make money. Nigeria is currently importing $900,000.000 of palm every year from Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

    “The earlier we remind our people of people that it’s high time we did something not only for ourselves, but for the industries is very important.”

    On the criteria needed to be qualified for selection as beneficiary for the programme, the Senator elect for Abia North said, “Let me state it clearly that the selection for beneficiaries of this programme is not going to have anything to do with political party.

    “This is not a partisan programme. It’s just like the free loan scheme. All Abians are Abians. Elections have come and gone. We are into governance now and in governance, we don’t count party.

    “What is important is to reduce crime, unemployment and make people self-sufficient through this programme.

    “The sharing among families will depend on the availability of lands. It must be a family land. We don’t want to give palm to one individual who will in turn go and sell it. The asset must be family land. We must inspect it.

    “If they have up to 5 hectares, 1 acre or whatever, we’ll measure it and give them according to the sizes of their lands.

    “The family elders must satisfy that this is a family land before we give out. So, the number you’ll get, will depend on the capacity of your land.”