President Bola Tinubu said the persistent farmers/herders’ clashes in the country will be consigned to history if the governors would be willing to provide land.
He said he would launch a comprehensive plan that would end the bloody clashes if the governors would accede to his request.
The president stated this yesterday in Minna, Niger State, where he was the guest at the commissioning of the remodelled Minna airport terminal and the flag off of Food Security and Agricultural Mechanisation Programme of the state government.
The project is for the deployment of cutting-edge agricultural machinery and technology for large-scale agro-value chain development in the state.
Spokesman for the president, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, quoted the president as saying: “We have seen the level of commitment here. We have seen leadership. The success of any leader will depend on the ability to do what needs to be done when it ought to be done.
“It is now time for us to address the challenges and make Nigeria an economy of opportunities. We must care for our people; re-orient our people. I do not see why Nigeria cannot feed all students in its schools.
“I know what it means for roaming cows to eat crops and the vegetation of our land. I know it is painful. But when we re-orient the herder and make provision for cattle rearing, we can address that.
”You are the governors who are to provide us with land. I, as president, I am committed to providing a comprehensive programme that will solve this problem.”
On the N30, 000 wage award, the president urged the sub-national government to implement wage awards in their states to complement the efforts of the federal government in easing the burden of citizens, pending when the minimum wage would be increased.
He said with the resources available to all the states, they are in a position to pay the N30, 000 wage award and the existing salaries of their workers.
“We need to relieve our people of hunger. Let all the sub-nationals start paying wage awards, pending when the minimum wage is increased.
“I am not giving you order. I am only appealing to you all, the sub-nationals. Whatever the civil servants are taking now and the wage award, it will relieve the people,” he added.
Earlier in his remarks, the state governor, Mr Umar Bago said agriculture is key to addressing the challenges in critical sectors of our economy, promising that “we shall seize every opportunity for the attainment of growth and engender prosperity for the people of our beloved state and, by extension, our country, Nigeria.”
“Mr. President, your presence here today underscores the importance of this occasion for our state, in particular, and Nigeria, as a whole, as we gather to celebrate a good example demonstrated in our modest contribution to infrastructure and agricultural development encapsulated in our New Niger Agenda,” he said.
He informed the president that four states, including Benue, Kogi, Kwara, and Lagos, had already signed memoranda of understanding on building partnerships for the development of agriculture.
