*Vows To Go After Economic Reforms Saboteurs
BY GODWIN IJEDIOGOR
THE Presidency, on Friday, February 23, announced that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security was in the final stages of releasing 42,000 metric tonnes of assorted food items to support the vulnerable populations across the country.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, who disclosed this in a statement in Abuja, said the grains were bagged in seven locations for onward distributions to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and distribution would commence immediately after the bagging process.
Onanuga said that the first batch would be complemented by the 60,000 metric tonnes to be purchased by the Federal Government from the mega rice millers, adding: “The Federal Government is also ramping up food production by boosting dry season farming under the National Agricultural Growth Scheme Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP) Project.
“The First Phase of the dry season farming, launched in November, last year, focuses on the cultivation of wheat across 15 wheat-producing states, covering 118,657 hectares and involving 107,429 farmers. The fields are green now and harvest will commence in a matter of weeks.
“There are fantastic reports of growth of wheat from Jigawa State, which is now targeting harvest from about 50,000 hectares, 10,000 hectares more than initially allotted under the programme.”
The presidential aide stated that second phase of the dry season farming for rice, maize and cassava would commence soon across all 36 states and the Federal Capital territory (FCT), saying: “For rice, the target is 250,000 hectares involving 500,000 farmers, with the expected output of one million metric tons of paddy rice.
“For maize, we are cultivating 55,000 hectares with 110,000 farmers, thereby adding 165,000 metric tons to national maize production.
“For cassava, we are doing 35,000 hectares with 70,000 farmers to produce 525,000 metric tons of cassava.
“The NAGS-AP Project offers a 50 per cent subsidy. However, the Federal Government is providing additional support for Phase Two, which will bring aggregate subsidy to about 93 per cent to farmers cultivating the crops.”
Onanuga explained that state governors were also showing strong support to further enhance the subsidy, adding that solar-powered water pumps for irrigation were being deployed to aid the upcoming phase of the programme.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government said it would soon go after economy saboteurs truncating its efforts in providing dividends of democracy and making life better for all Nigerians.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, in a statement on Friday in Abuja, stated that the President, since assumption of office, has made far-reaching decisions regarding his economic vision for Nigeria, one of which was the immediate end to the petrol subsidy regime,
Idris stated that Tinubu also made a firm promise to channel the savings accruing from the removal into much-needed investments in public infrastructure, education, healthcare and social investment and to actualise the promise, the monthly receipts by states from the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) had surged since the subsidy removal.
He faulted “unpatriotic narrative by opposition faulting the fuel subsidy removal,” adding: “It is instructive that the removal of the petrol subsidy was one policy decision that all the three major candidates were unanimous on in their 2023 political campaign messaging.
“It is, therefore, mystifying to see people who had argued stridently for the removal now pretending to be against it today. This insincerity does not augur well for our country and our democracy.”
He said Tinubu’s second most far-reaching pronouncement was his promise that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would work towards a unified exchange rate, noting that CBN’s efforts had been met with ferocious resistance from speculators and other unscrupulous players within and outside our country.
“The government will not allow its efforts to be jeopardised. The emerging stability of the naira is in the interest of all Nigerians. Nigerians should be rest assured that the government will continue to take further steps to stabilise the Naira and safeguard our economy,” he stated.
Idris called for the patience and understanding of Nigerians as the government sails through the difficult times into a season of abundant benefits and truly renewed hope, assuring that Tinubu and his team remained resolutely committed and focused on the task of bringing immediate relief and enduring prosperity to all Nigerians.
