By KEMI KASUMU
Although members of the public are yet to see a shop where 50kg bag of rice is sold for N40,000, Yoruba socio-cultural group consisting mainly leaders from five other states of South West other than Lagos, Afenifere, has commended the Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Federal Government for making it happen.
It, however, advocated for the distribution of the commodity through market associations rather than state governments.
In a press statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, Afenifere observed that the distribution of the commodity in all the 36 states of the Federation including Abuja at this time “is noteworthy in view of the hunger in the land”.
It would be recalled that the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, on Monday, July 29, 2024, disclosed that the Federal Government had not only begun the distribution of 20 trucks of rice per state, it had also directed that a bag be sold at N40,000 instead of above N70,000 that is the current price that Nigerians buy.
Reports even have it that 10 additional trucks have been dispatched making it a total of 30 trucks per state while some states such as Katsina, Bayelsa have reportedly acknowledged the receipt of the commodity but some Nigerians who bought rice in Lagos and Ogun states and who spoke to The DEFENDER said as at Wednesday, they bought bags of rice at different prices of N70,000 (Ogun) and N73,000 (Lagos).
The Minister said flooding of the space with rice was one of several initiatives by President Bola Tinubu’s government to make food available and more affordable so as to ease the pains of the people.
Although the Tinubu’s Presidency has denied opening of borders and removal of import duties as recently circulated, his Minister said, incidentally, that the rice distribution is supplementary to the opening of borders and removal of import duties on food items coming into the country from foreign sources, all in the attempts to put an end to the hunger in the land.
The Yoruba socio-cultural group, in the statement, said, “Afenifere welcomes these steps by the federal government but felt that items being brought in would serve better purposes if channeled through market associations who would be instructed to sell at the controlled prices.
“This will entail the resuscitation of the defunct commodity boards that would ensure the availability, distribution and sales of the commodities in various parts of the country. Incidentally, the federal government has expressed readiness to do this going by the disclosure of Vice President Kashim Shettima who announced the plan by the government to set up commodity boards ‘to regulate the soaring prices of food in the country’.”
Ajayi recalled that Shettima made this disclosure on Tuesday, February 13, 2024 while speaking at a two-day strategic meeting on climate change, food systems and resource mobilization in Abuja.
Shettima, who gave the assurance that security measures were being taken to ensure protection for “farms and farmers so that farmers can return to the farmlands without fear of attacks”, went further to talk about plans for farmland irrigation to ensure “year-round food production and addressing price volatility by establishing a National Commodity Board” to quote the vice president’s words.
According to Ajayi, “although the reason for the delay in getting the boards to be set up since then may not be immediately known, government should use the opportunity of bringing commodities into the public space to have the boards set up. Members of the boards must be people within the vicinity of where the commodities are to be distributed and marketed so that the people there would be their own watchdogs. Doing so would also remove the suspicion of the federal government wanting to impose on the people.”
In view of steps being taking by the federal government to address identified problems in the country, particularly with regard to food, Afenifere reiterated its earlier call on those behind a nationwide, ten-days-long protest to shelve it.
“Steps being taking as well as statements coming from those in the corridors of power are indications that government has not only heard what the people are saying, it is actually prepared to address the issues being raised. Since the motivation behind the idea of going into the streets is to let the government know and address the situation in the country, and since government is already doing so, we feel that there is no longer any need to embark on street demonstrations especially given the risk of its being hijacked by those who may want to use it as an excuse to loot and cause mayhem as happened at the Federal College of Education (FCE) Akoka in Lagos State yesterday.”
Afenifere spokesman recalled that many groups and individuals are already reminding those behind the planned protest to shelve it as it would be ‘counter productive and disruptive’ to quote Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) as contained in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Professor Muhammad Tukur Baba.
Afenifere urged President Tinubu to urgently ease the trauma of farmers in the country through, among others, an adroit and transparent utilization of the Two Trillion Naira package recently approved on the Accelerated Stabilization and Advancement Plan of which agriculture is a key component as put forward by the Presidential Economic Coordination Council (PECC).
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in January this year put the inflation rate of food in Nigeria at an alarming 33.9 percent.
It is a known fact that rice is one of the most consumed staples in Nigeria with a consumption per capita of 32kg. Reports have it that Nigerians’ rice consumption rose within the last decades almost four times the global consumption rate. The two tonnes per hectare being realized presently is about half of what obtains in Asia.
“In this wise, Federal, State and Local Governments must do all that is possible to encourage mechanized farming across the country”, Afenifere submitted.
