.No food importation, scarcity temporary difficulty that will soon go away –Minister
Barely 24 hours after the Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III raised the alarm over worsening Insecurity and hunger in the country, the federal government and governors of the 36 states have agreed to set up state police to contain insecurity nationwide.
The agreement was reached during an emergency meeting between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the governors, held at the presidential villa, Abuja on Thursday.
Vice president Kashim Shettima also attended.
Minister of information and national orientation, Idris Mohammed, disclosed this to State House correspondents at a briefing after the meeting joined by Governors Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), Ubah Sani (Kaduna) and Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta).
Noting that both the federal and state governments are considering the idea, Mohammed said series of meetings will be held to determine the modalities for the setting up of the state police, adding however, that nothing concrete has yet been determined.
Besides security, Thursday’s meeting also dwelt on the food scarcity in the country even as the minister hinted that a committee had been set up to synthesize all that had been discussed at the meeting.
According to him, Tinubu has directed the National Security Adviser, the director general of the Department of State Services and the Inspector General of Police to liaise with governors in order to end hoarding of food items in the country.
He also indicated that there will be no importation of food commodities contrary to the position earlier taken by the federal government.
He explained that government wants to sustain the gains already made in local food production in the belief that the country can feed itself and also be a net exporter.
Idris added that the meeting which was at the instance of the President was called to intimate the state governors about what the federal government is doing and to also hear from them, their suggestions about issues of development.
He said that several issues were discussed about the security situation in the country. The apparent food shortage that the media has also been reporting about and some other measures that will help in improving the state of our nation.
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He said: “Now, the first point is that the governors and Mr. President have agreed to set up a committee to deepen the conversation that has happened at the just-concluded meeting. Of course, you know that it is impossible to complete most of the issues that were raised at the meeting so is going to be a continuous one.
“The President and the governors have agreed that these kinds of meetings will continue in the interest of our nation.
“It is important that all the time, the federal government and the state governors who are leaders at the sub national level to continue to engage and interact collectively so that issues of national importance will continue to be addressed, and we don’t leave room for any speculation or for people who may seize the opportunity to say things that are not in the interest of our country.
“The National Security Adviser, NSA, the Director General of the State Services, and the Inspector General of Police have been directed to coordinate with the state governors to look at the issue of those hoarding commodities.
”At this point, the nation requires foods to be brought out to the people so that we can control prices and put food on the table of most Nigerians, other commodity traders are busy hoarding these commodities so that Nigerians will suffer or they will make more money as a result.
“So the governors and Mr. President have taken this decision that security agencies will collaborate with the state governors to ensure that this ends.
“Number two, a decision has also been taken that in the interest of our country, there will be no need for food importation at this point. Nigeria has the potential to feed itself and even be a net exporter of food items to other countries. And we do not also want to reverse some of the progress we have seen in terms of food production in this country.
“What we’re seeing now is just a temporary difficulty that will soon go away. Therefore, the solution to it is by continuous investment in agriculture so that food can be made available to all Nigerians.
“Of course,you know that Mr. President has declared emergency in agriculture many months ago. Therefore, part of the measures that has been taken is to ensure that investments, more investments are made in this sector for the benefit of our people.
He stated that the governors also agreed to join hands with Mr. President to deepen their own investment in the agricultural sector so that more food will be made available to Nigerians. Of course, this investment is not just in crop production, it is also in livestock development and management.
“All these is to ensure that food is available in the area of security. Mr President and the state governors have all agreed that at this point, we are seeing significant improvement in the security situation around the country of course.
“This is not to say that the security situation has been solved completely. But we have seen significant improvement. In Borno, for example, areas where farmers have not been able to cultivate as a result of security, those farmers have now returned to their farms. It is also the same thing in Jigawa and many parts of the country. The governors, including the governor of Plateau State, have also attested to the fact that despite all the challenges that we’re having, there appears to be improvement in security in these areas.
“Of course, as I said, the situation has not been completely solved. But we are seeing a positive movement towards a secure Nigeria.
“Mr. President and the governors also thank the security agencies for the work they are doing. Some of them even pay the supreme price with their lives to ensure that Nigerians have a secure environment. They have thanked Mr. President for all that he’s doing. And they have also asked him to do more so that at the end of the day, we will have a completely secured Nigeria.
“Now in this direction. Mr. President and the state governors have also discussed the possibility of improving the numeric strength of forest rangers to train them so that they can keep our forests and our borders very safe.
“The federal government and the state governments are mulling the possibility of setting up state police.
“Of course, this is still going to be further discussed. A lot of work has to be done in that direction. Both the federal government and the state governments agree to the necessity of having state police, now this is a significant shift. But like I said, more work needs to be done in that direction.
He disclosed that more meetings will have to happen between the federal government and the subnational to see the modalities of achieving this. Now, these are some of the issues that have been discussed.
“Mr. President has also called on the state governors to join hands with the federal government to provide more for people, especially the teeming youth population. There is going to be a joint programme between the state governments and the federal government to ensure that our teeming youth population is gainfully employed. So that we will reduce to the barest minimum the issue of unemployment in the country.
“At the end of it all. The 36 state governors and Mr. President are all on one page irrespective of political differences to ensure that Nigeria remains peaceful. Nigeria remains united. Nigeria remains prosperous, going forward. And this kind of conversation, like I said, will continue to be deepened. Engagements between the federal government and the state governors will continue”.
.as Tinubu orders security agencies to go after people hoarding foods
Meanwhile, Bola Tinubu on Thursday ordered the trio of the National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, the Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, and the Director General of the Department of State Service Yusuf Bichi to collaborate with governors and go after those hoarding foodstuff.
This is a fallout of the President’s meeting with state governors in Abuja on the current food crisis the country is facing.
Protest broke out in Niger State last week against the rising cost of food items in the country which many have also attributed to hoarding by some middlemen.
In Kano State, the government had to confiscate 10 warehouses said to be hoarding food items in the state.
Responding to this challenge, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said that Tinubu mandated these security heads to liaise with the state governors.
“First, the National Security Adviser, Inspector General of Police; and Director General of the State Services have been directed to coordinate with the state governors to look at this issue of those hoarding commodities,” he said after a meeting between President Tinubu and state governors on Thursday.
“At this point that the nation requires food to be brought out to the people so that we can control prices and put food on the table of most Nigerians, commodity sellers are busy hoarding these commodities so that Nigerians will suffer or they will make more money as a result.
“So, the governors and Mr President have taken this decision that security agencies will collaborate with state governors to ensure this ends,” Idris told journalists.
On the government’s plan to import food to ease the rising cost of food items, Idris said that won’t be necessary as the country has the potential to feed itself.
“A decision has also been taken that in the interest of our country, there would be no need for food importation at this time. Nigeria has the potential to feed itself and be a net exporter of food items to other countries,” he said.
“We do not also want to reverse some of the progress we have seen in terms of food production in this country. What we are seeing now is just a temporary difficulty that will soon go away,” he added.
