The Federal Government’s palliative scheme deployed to the 36 states and the FCT to cushion the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy has been described as unsustainable by the Niger State Governor, Mohammed Bago.
Recall that the federal government on Thursday announced the release of an N180 billion palliative package to states to cushion the impact of the fuel subsidy removal.
Each state is expected to get N5 billion and 180 trucks of rice as part of measures to assuage the pains of the subsidy removal.
Reacting to this, the Niger governor has warned the government against the palliative, saying the palliative can not deal with the level of hardship Nigerians are going through, therefore, it will be advisable to explore other alternatives.
The governor, at the flag-off of the distribution of farm inputs to wet season farmers from the 25 local government areas of the state, said it would be in the best interest of Nigerians if the government could look into making agriculture work, OsunDailyNG reports.
He said, “I want to use this medium to thank President Bola Tinubu, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, for coming to the aid of vulnerable Nigerians.
“But we must be honest with ourselves; the palliative scheme cannot be sustained; we have to go back to the farm to reinflate our economy.
“In Niger State, we are poised to make agriculture become the focus of our administration in addressing poverty and food security”
The governor explained that to realise the policy thrust of his administration, the government would cultivate 10,000 hectares of land in each of the 25 Local Government Areas of Niger State.
He noted, “We are planning to cultivate 250 hectares of land in the next cropping season with each local government area cultivating crops they have comparative advantage.
“I want all the local government council officials to take this as a marching order as we make available 78 metric tons of fertilisers and other farm inputs .“
Speaking further, Bago said, “We want to discuss with the people (bandits) and see how the carnage in our state is brought under control to enable us to achieve our agricultural goals and empower our people and ensure food security.
“To achieve an all-inclusive government, we have now established the Ministry of Nomad and Pastoral Affairs to bring on board the hitherto neglected segment.”
