NNPP guber candidate promises to harness agric potentials in Bauchi

Gubernatorial candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) in Bauchi State, Ambassador Shuaibu Ahmed has promised that if elected into power in 2019, his administration would harness the state’s agricultural potentials because according to him, the state is endowed with a land mass of 4, 925, 900 million hectares of land out of which about 3, 940, 000 million hectares are suitable for farming.

The candidate who spoke on Saturday while inaugurating his campaign council lamented that despite the land mass of the state, only 23 per cent or 920, 000 hectares is currently being farmed for rain-fed agriculture and only 16, 000 hectares is being utilised for irrigation farming.

“Bauchi state has the capacity to turn all these thousands of hectares of land GREEN all year round utilising them for growing various food and cash crops. Thus, creating tremendous job opportunities for our people,” he opined.

According to him, aside fertile land, the state has an estimated livestock population of 1.2 million heads of cattle, 2.1 million sheep, 2.8 million goats and nearly four million poultry and 43 grazing reserves which he asserted could turn Bauchi into the meat capital of Nigeria if properly harnessed.

Shuaibu Ahmed further said that “The combination of the existing wildlife, Eco, Conferencing and Sports hosting facilities of Bauchi State will no doubt make the State the most preferred and premier destination for corporate retreats, Sports events, Conferences and Meetings, Family recreation and Youth camps in West Africa.”

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The governorship hopeful also decried that “despite these amazing potentials and the huge financial resources received by the current administration from the Federation Account, Bauchi state is allegedly confronted with excruciating poverty, high unemployment, overwhelming illiteracy, internal tensions and strife.”

“From the 2017 Oxford University Multidimensional Poverty Index, Bauchi State is one of the most poverty ravaged states in the country with a rate of 87 per cent ahead of only of Jigawa and Zamfara States,” he stated.

“Recent statistics from the NBS shows that Unemployment is at an alarming rate of 41.4 per cent while the literacy rate of the state is 27 per cent or the illiteracy rate of 73 per cent, second lowest in the federation,” he alleged.

He added that: “A new Bauchi state is indeed possible! A Bauchi State that is characterized by an unrelenting quest for the good of the greatest number of our people putting people first in all decisions and actions of Government. This is what citizens of Bauchi State want, and this is what our party, the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) and Myself, as Governor, are offering and promising.”