Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, said that politics has been used to deny the state access to agricultural loans offered by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Governor Wike made the accusation when he hosted the Minister of State for Agriculture, and Rural Development, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, at Government House, Port Harcourt, on Monday.
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The governor decried the situation where every issue in the country including agriculture has been politicised instead of implementing such policy dispassionately to achieve the intended food security and jobs for the youths.
“I think, I am one of those States that nobody gives loans for agriculture. I don’t know what hatred the Central Bank Governor has for us? We do not know.
“We have been hearing of ANCHOR borrower this and ANCHOR that. But when it concerns Rivers State, you will hear a lot of things.”
Governor Wike explained that in an idle situation devoid of politics, the Central Bank of Nigeria will partner with the Rivers State government to achieve the objectives of setting up the State-owned cassava processing plant.
“Please tell the Governor of Central Bank to remember us too, that we are part of Nigeria.
“When we applied, they said this loan was N5 billion. We have applied for more than one year now. They said we should bring this and bring that.
“They said we should bring the co-operative societies and I say this where the politics come from.
“If I want to eat government money, I can sit here and write cooperative societies. The previous administration took a loan and said they gave it to cooperative societies of over N3 billion.
“Who are these corporative societies? And the money went off like that.
“And we are telling you to see the cassava processing plant that you are supposed to say we will buy into this, we will support the State government. Nothing has happened.”
‘Cassava revolution waxing without CBN intervention’
Governor Wike said even without the loans from the Central Bank of Nigeria, his administration is achieving a revolution in cassava processing that will create jobs for youths and enduring patronage for farmers.
“It is not in dispute that to take the country out of where we are, agriculture is key.
“If we are sincere with the reality that agriculture will employ a lot of our youths; give them jobs and achieve food security, then we must do it in such a way that we really mean what we say.”
The governor said the State government will invite the Minister of Agriculture to commission the cassava processing plant.
According to him, many companies have keyed in already to buy off what will be processed.
“We have over 3000 farmers who have registered. From them, the company will buy off all their produce. We are happy with this feat.”
Speaking further, Governor Wike expressed surprised over the road projects and provision of solar-powered electricity that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture claimed to have provided to rural communities in the State.
Minister of State for Agriculture, and Rural Development, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, said he is in the State to inspect ongoing and completed projects that will boost rural agricultural activities under his ministry.
He said the federal government is poised to support Rivers farmers with new technology that will address the problems of low yields, allow them to have access to improved varieties of cassava produce, chemical for treatment for the seeds and crops protection.
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