Why Professors are not entitled to be provosts of agriculture colleges —Manggoel

The Acting National President of the Academic Staff Union of Colleges of Agriculture (ASUCA), Dr. Williams Manggoel, speaks with ISAAC SHOBAYO on the dichotomy between Nigerian colleges of agriculture and other tertiary institutions in Nigeria, the colleges’ exclusion from TETFund and the state of agriculture in Nigeria, among other topical issues.

SIR, why is your union against the appointment of professors from universities as the provosts of the colleges of agriculture?

 We are objecting to it because colleges of agriculture have a different mandate. We have a unique vision that differs from those coming from other tertiary institutions like universities.

We train our students to acquire practical skills through diplomas, higher national diplomas, and other technical certifications. University professors are coming in simply because of the benefits they hope to receive—not because they want to develop the colleges of agriculture.

That is why I mentioned that in 2016 and 2017, there was a bill to amend the TETFund Act to include colleges of agriculture. Unfortunately, ASUU, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, objected to it. Up to this moment, we are not getting any funding from TETFund, which is the main source of funding for tertiary institutions.

We are a tertiary institution for God’s sake. TETFund supports colleges of education, polytechnics, and universities. Go to the University of Jos or any university, 90 per cent of their infrastructure and development are TETFund-driven.

So, if university staff are saying we shouldn’t enjoy TETFund, why are they coming to benefit from a system they have prevented from accessing [developmental] fund? I will also give an example. In every organization, everyone aspires to rise to the top of their career. In a primary school, you want to become a headmaster; in a secondary school, a principal; and in a university, a vice chancellor. In a college of agriculture, you want to become a provost. But let us be factual, this kind of cross-carpeting is not helping the system. That’s why you don’t appoint an Army officer as Chief of Naval Staff or an Air Force officer as Chief of Army Staff. It just doesn’t work. You don’t make a soldier the Inspector General of Police. These are clear boundaries we must respect as a country.

You mentioned the exclusion of colleges of agriculture from TETFund activities. Have you raised your concern with the appropriate authorities?

Yes, we have. And I want to say that there are still good people in this country, even in the Bola Tinubu administration who believe that colleges of agriculture should be included in TETFund.

In 2016, as I said, there were two bills—one in the Senate and one in the House of Representatives. The then-chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture sponsored one of those bills. In the Senate, the Committee on Agriculture also supported it. In fact, the former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, was the one who sponsored the bill. But somehow, civil society organizations were brought in and they objected. That was how the matter died.

It is not about having degrees. It is about practical skills. The colleges of agriculture are where actual production and skill development take place. University students often aspire to office jobs. But in colleges of agriculture, we train people in practical skills. In developed countries, this is the focus. That is what we want the government to understand. Let them initiate an Executive Bill to include colleges of agriculture in TETFund. That is the only solution.

Prior to this interview, you cited a college of agriculture in Ibadan as one of the colleges where the rules governing the appointment of provost were circumvented. What are the issues surrounding this?

Yes, specifically, the Federal College of Agriculture, Ibadan. There was an advertisement for the position of Provost and Chief Executive Officer. The advertisement clearly stated that applicants should be Assistant Directors, Principal Lecturers, or Associate Professors from research institutes and colleges of agriculture. We don’t know why a university professor, who isn’t a chief lecturer or principal lecturer, would apply Those ranks don’t exist in the university system. Even if he applied, he shouldn’t have been shortlisted, let alone appointed. So, we objected to the appointment.

We wrote to the ARCN, the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, objecting to the appointment that the appointee does not come from our system. He doesn’t understand what we do. We have qualified and competent people within our system. And considering the university system’s past opposition to our inclusion in TETFund, we don’t see them as allies. We issued a 21-day ultimatum. There was no response. We then issued a 7-day ultimatum. Still nothing. So when we issued the ultimatum and there was still no reply, we held our National Administrative Council (NAC) and National Executive Council (NEC) meetings. That is the leadership structure of our union.

Some of our members were ready to embark on an indefinite strike. But we said no. We are not interested in strike. We believe this government is passionate about agriculture and will listen. Something is clearly wrong somewhere and needs to be corrected. If they show sincerity and are positive about addressing our concerns, there may be no need for further industrial action. The warning strike may be all. But if nothing is done, we will be left with no choice but to go on strike.

It may interest you to know that while we were handling the issue at the Federal College of Agriculture, Ibadan, we saw another advertisement for the Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology in Vom. In that advertisement, they only mentioned positions like  Assistant Director and Principal Lecturers. They deliberately omitted Associate Professors and did not specify that the positions were strictly for staff of Federal Colleges of Agriculture and National Agricultural Research Institutes.

This omission is suspicious. The advertisement for the Federal College of Agriculture, Ibadan, was very clear—it specifically stated that applicants must be from Federal Colleges of Agriculture and National Agricultural Research Institutes. So we are beginning to suspect that they are trying to sneak in something through this vague language, and it might create a problem later. What is even more surprising is that I discovered that advertisements had also been placed for several other colleges just like the one for Vom. Those advertisements contain the same vague language.

What is your assessment of the agricultural policy of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration?

We are coming from a background where things have not been done right for a long time. All those past agricultural schemes, like the Anchor Borrowers Programme, were flooded with funds, but we didn’t see real results. It ended with a lot of talk, but no impact on the ground. However, I believe this current administration is trying to reshape things. Even though there are challenges here and there, I’m hopeful. The way they have split the ministries—creating the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, the Ministry of Livestock Development, and the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy—is a good move. It promotes focus and proper supervision. Those in fisheries will focus on that, those in livestock on theirs, and so on.

I see a prospect. I’m not a pessimist. I believe President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing something different. But we pray—because at the end of the day, it is not just about the president. It is about the people running the system. He doesn’t know everything happening on the ground. As we see with the issue we’re discussing now, someone somewhere is not doing his job. Someone is creating a vacuum, and it needs to be addressed.

But with the current state of insecurity in the country, especially in the food basket regions, do you think food sufficiency is still possible?

Yes, absolutely. States like Benue, Taraba, and Plateau—these are the food baskets of the nation. Insecurity is the biggest challenge we face in agriculture, no doubt. But I believe there is hope. I live positively.

There are new measures being taken. For instance, the Chief of Army Staff encouraged communities to get involved in their own security. That is a step in the right direction. I’m also a community leader, and I can tell you that if communities cooperate with government, we will get there.

There are also technological interventions now—like the use of drones to monitor farmlands. Even in the North-East, where we have had serious challenges, improvements are visible. In our region too, if the government is serious about security, agriculture will thrive again. Community participation is key. Bandits and those causing instability can be flushed out if communities and government work together. Plateau is not left out of this. I believe if we unite, we will overcome the problem and succeed.

One of the issues you have always talked about is post-harvest waste. We see a surplus during harvest, but not long after, the same produce becomes scarce. How do we solve this issue?

We need to improve our processing capacity for perishable farm produce. Let’s take tomatoes, for example. During peak season, there is a glut and most of it gets wasted. But a few months later, we face scarcity. I am calling on both state and federal governments to invest in agro-processing industries. Look at Plateau State—the amount of potatoes harvested during peak season is massive. If we have a tomato processing factory or a potato plant, we will reduce waste and improve internally generated revenue (IGR).

The government can go into public-private partnerships (PPPs) to set up these factories. Another important aspect is value addition. We need to turn raw farm produce into longer-lasting products. Cassava, yams, and others can be transformed to increase their shelf life and market value.

This used to happen in the past. We had commodity boards that bought produce from farmers. Today, farmers are in crisis. Meanwhile, fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides, and even tractor hiring costs have all gone up. So, how do farmers survive? If nothing is done, many farmers may not be able to cultivate large areas this year. Inputs are expensive, but the price of produce is low. That is a big problem.

What is your take on the fertilizer distribution policy? How can the issues of politics surrounding it be resolved?

Yes, there is too much politics in fertilizer distribution and I completely agree with you. It is a reflection of how rotten our system has become. I am just praying that our leaders and the people in charge become more sincere.

The way fertilizer is handled today, only the rich and politically connected benefit. A whole truckload of subsidized fertilizer meant for poor farmers ends up in the hands of politicians. It never reaches the real farmers. That is our system for you. We must fix it. We need sincerity and accountability. Let us help the system to work as it should.

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