Farmers in Ekiti State under the auspices of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) has cried out that government areas designated as reserves are currently being occupied by criminal herdsmen to wreak havoc on the farmers and residents of the state.
The chairman of AFAN in the state, Mr Adeniran Alagbada, who stated this in his paper presented at the just concluded security summit by the Ekiti State Council of Elders called on the government to urgently allocate these areas for farmers to plant crops and ensure food security in the state.
While commending the elders for coming up with the summit at a time when farmers are facing serious attacks by the criminal herders, he expressed optimism that resolutions from the discourse will be critical in providing long lasting solution.
He noted that farmers in the state are daily facing risk of insecurity such as kidnapping, destruction of farm lands and killing which is said if continued unabated would have adverse effect on food production and the sustenance of the economy.
Alagbada accused some traditional institutions and political elites of contributing to the menace of insescurity against farmers and resident in the South-West, by allocating lands to the herders and buying cows for them to herd, saying, “the resultant effect was that they remain permanent on our land thereby posing threat to we the crop farmers and our crops.”
According to him, “The unutilised vast of lands tagged government reserved lands contributed to the security risk facing Ekiti farmers and their inhabitants. These vast of land are suppose to be allocated to intending farmers for agricultural purposes now serves as hideouts for hemps planters, dens of killer herders, and subterfuge for all sorts of heinous criminals, such as kidnappers and bandits terrorizing the state.”
“With all the fore goings, an average Ekiti farmers is exposed to the risk of being murdered , raped or kidnapped by an unknown gunmen in the course of providing food security for all and guaranteeing national security.”
He added that the future economic prosperity of the state would be largely dependent on agriculture and agro-forestry sector but lamented that the farmers are battling to deliver on their mandate of providing food as a result of insecurity.
“Today, this golden opportunity is being threatened by climate change which could be managed and the worst is the unprecedented insecurity of the lives and investment of farmers , which are beyond the management capacity of the farmers,” he said.
The AFAN chairman who called for urgent and timely concerted efforts among stakeholders in addressing the situation, feared that if not nip in the bud, “ we are all going to pay the price of food insecurity and hunger.”
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CLAIM 1: A Twitter user claims UNICEF said any efforts to block children from accessing pornography might infringe their human rights.Govt reserves serving as hideouts for criminal herdsmen, Ekiti farmers cry out
Govt reserves serving as hideouts for criminal herdsmen, Ekiti farmers cry out
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