A senior Consultant and Public Affairs analyst, Abdulsalam Suleiman Izuagbe, has said President Bola Tinubu should not be blamed for the current food shortage in Nigeria.
Izuagbe said terrorists collecting levies from farmers in some Northern states are responsible for the current food shortage.
Speaking with OsunDailyNG, the Sokoto-based analyst urged Tinubu to show the political will by ordering security agencies to confront the terrorists with the appropriate weapons.
He also charged the Minister of Agriculture to implement policies initiated by a former minister, Akinwunmi Adesina, to boost food production in Nigeria.
Izuagbe said, “This is the first planting season since Tinubu came into power, the minister of Agriculture should hit the ground running and be ready to help the farmers, he should not be in one place. He should borrow a leaf from what Dr Akinwunmi Adesina did during Jonathan’s administration. If he does what is right, within the next three to four months, there will be bumper harvest.
“These terrorists are stopping farmers from going to their farms and these is where the police, Army has to wake up, Air Force will now come in to root out these terrorists who are collecting up to N100, 000 from farmers before they can enter their farmland. How do you plant? The present shortage of food in Nigeria is not Tinubu’s fault, it’s because farmers could not farm last year and what you don’t plant you can’t harvest.
“If the farmers can’t go to farm their will be little harvest and when you have little food in the market, more money will be chasing a few goods and economically; you have inflation.
“President Bola Tinubu should demonstrate a strong political will by directing our security forces to take the battle to the enemies with appropriate weapons, as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This should be without further delay.
“Adesina’s policies should work where you have the supply fertilizer distribution chain to the farmers and improved seedling that mature within 40 days, there are corn that mature within 40 days and ready for harvest. We have it at the Institute of Agric Research in ABU Zaria, IITA in Ibadan has it, it’s available in Jos.
“These improved seedlings must be introduced to the farmers now and within four months, there will be bumper harvest and food security for the people.”
