Plateau State is known for its pleasant weather conditions and rich farmlands that promote large scale food production that satisfies the needs of not just the people of the state, but in the region and beyond. Sadly, constant raids on agrarian communities in Plateau and neighbouring states by ethnic militia have led to the abandonment of farmlands as farmers flee from danger ISAAC SHOBAYO writes on the impact of this development on food production.
This is not the best time for farmers in Plateau State and others within the geopolitical zone of the Middle Belt. Quite a lot of them have abandoned their source of livelihood, which is farming, as a result of persistent attacks on their communities by the marauders identified as herdsmen militia.
Checks by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that quite a lot of farmers are taking refuge at different internally displaced people (IDP) camps across the states in the region. Further findings indicate that the zone has the largest concentration of IDP camps in the northern part of the country.
Apart from the killings and destruction of properties, farms are often mowed down with mischievous night grazing to destroy farms. To worsen the plight of these people, the attackers often stay behind to occupy their villages after the original residents might have been chased away to foreclose the possibility of their return.
In Plateau, Benue, and Taraba States, there are quite a lot of communities, mostly agrarian, that have been taken over by these elements. The National President of the Berom Youth Moulders Association, Solomon Dalyop, said no fewer than 150 communities and villages are presently being occupied illegally by the militias in the troubled part of the state.
Dalyop pointed out that there are instances where the militias have started cultivating their lands, as well as rebuilding the native houses without any fear or molestation, alleging that most of these unfortunate acts are being carried out within the attention of the security agencies.
From all indications, the three states in the past 10 years have remained the epic centres of the armed herdsman activities that repeatedly attacked and sacked communities. No fewer than 12 local government areas in Benue State are under the siege of these marauders, leaving in their trail sorrow, anguish, and pain on all fronts. The neighbouring states of benue and Taraba are no exception.
To stem the ugly trend, the governments of these states introduced various policies and measures, but to no avail. The Benue State government, under the administration of the former Governor Samuel Ortom, enacted the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranch Establishment Law, while his counterpart in Plateau State, former Governor Simon Lalong, came up with the anti-land-grabbing law. Despite signing them into law, the attacks continued unabated.
A new dimension has equally set in: apart from killings and burning of houses, the attackers are in the habit of crushing newly planted crops and setting crops waiting to be harvested on fire to compound farmers’ woes.
The attacks have crippled farming activities to a large extent; at the moment, the state of farming is at a low ebb in most parts of these troubled states. To avoid death, quite a lot of farmers have either deserted their farms for fear of being attacked or at the moment, are at the IDP camps.
A cross-section of the people who spoke with Nigerian Tribune linked the current food crisis besetting the country to the incessant attacks by killer herdsmen, which had forced many farmers to abandon their farms. They posited that unless both the states and federal governments take the bull by the horns and address the raging insecurity in the country, especially in the states considered the food basket of the country, the food crisis might get worse and assume a frightening dimension.
From all indications, the cultivation of Irish potatoes, which Plateau State is known for, has continued to shrink as local government areas such as Bokkos, Mangu, Riyom, and Barakin-Ladi, where the crop is produced in large quantities, are under siege. Farmers in the affected communities are afraid of returning to their ancestral land for fear of being attacked.
Some of the IDPs who spoke with the newsmen during the visit of the Committee on Resettlement set up by Governor Caleb Muftwang were quite evasive in their responses. They expressed their willingness to return to their ancestral homes to farm, but were afraid because their lands and farms are currently being occupied by militias.
Worried over the food shortage in the country, especially in the Middle Belt, the National President of the Middle Belt Forum (MBF), Dr Bitrus Pogu, stated that food shortage might persist in the North and the entire country if there is no spirited attempt to dislodge bandits and terrorists from ancestral communities presently occupied by the elements.
Dr Pogu said quite a lot of farmers and other residents displaced could not go back to their communities and villages for fear of being attacked by bandits, adding that those in IDP camps must be resettled to address the food crisis in the country.
According to him, the palpable fear being expressed by the farmers was a result of a lack of adequate security to protect them in their ancestral homes, adding that most of the communities and villages they left are presently being occupied by bandits and terrorists.
He further attributed the shortage of food supplies in the country to banditry and acts of terrorism being meted out to farmers, adding that most of the areas considered the food baskets of the country are under the siege of the elements.
He said, “Without our farmers going to the farm, there is going to be hunger in the nation; the price of foodstuff will skyrocket, not only in the Middle Belt. Other parts of the country are also under attack. The security agencies need to intensify efforts in this regard and clear terrorists and bandits from our ancestral communities.
“At the moment, the military is doing a better job probably because of the political will. There is a clear departure from the Buhari era, when everything was just propaganda. The Chief of Army Staff today is doing a very good job because we have been verifying their claims; it is true that they are doing a good job.
“But let them increase the pressure on the bandits and terrorists so that our farmers can go to their farms. Also, ensure that those who are in the IDP camps go back to their ancestral homes and produce more food for Nigerians. I believe the military has the capacity, and even from the way they are operating now, the government in power today has the political will to make them more alive to their responsibility.”
A farmer in Plateau State who craved anonymity said one of the solutions to the food crisis being experienced in the country is to ensure that the insecurity in different parts of the north is addressed to pave the way for the farmers to return to their farms.
“The situation might be worse if the government does not ensure that these farmers return home. Moreover, we are already experiencing a food shortage. By the time the rainy season slips by without any serious farming activities, the suffering will be great. So these elements need to be dislodged,” he said.
A farmer named Titus Alkali, who now resides in an IDP camp in Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State, disclosed that the cost of farm produce like yam and cassava will continue to surge because security has forced many farmers to abandon their farms and seek refuge in an IDP camp, adding that in Benue and Taraba, the volume of production of these items has drastically reduced.
According to him, the high cost of the items was due to limited output caused by insecurity, not dollars, adding that persistent attacks on these communities have consequently reduced the output and caused a shortage.
“There are many villages that produced these food items in large quantity, but killer herdsmen have sacked the villages. To arrest food scarcity, the government has to tackle the security challenges in the country, especially in rural areas. While farmers languishing in IDP camps should be encouraged and helped to return to their ancestral homes by providing adequate security for them.
Also, the Plateau State chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria, Paul Beles NKwap, said that as a result of insecurity, most farmers in the state have since stopped interior farming .
“For the farmers to perform to the optimal level, the government should provide adequate security for them. Quite a lot of the farmers have abandoned farming for fear of attack, and this is fueling the current food crisis in the North and the country.
“Presently, as a result of the insecurity, people are no longer going to the interior for farming. Before, most of the big-time farmers used to go for three weeks before returning to their villages, but this has since stopped because of the rate of killings and kidnappings.
The general projection is that the food crisis might worsen if the government refuses to step in and weed out those responsible for the attacks.
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