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While I congratulate the Governor, government and the good people of Kogi state. I am particularly delighted by the speech made by Commissioner for Agriculture, Kehinde Oloruntoba. The commissioner who named Kogi as the highest producer of cashew may be too generous with that encomium but was not too far from the truth.
Today, Brazil and Ivory-coast are still big challengers because we would have top the chat last year, but lack of proper education of some of our farmers and criminals who would pluck the nuts unripe, created a low rating for our nuts. However, the commissioner was economical with the truth according the successes in cashew to government.
What we need to do presently as we move into another cashew season in February, is to create public enlightenment to our farmers and create a sort of realistic forest guard in all communities with the mandate to stamp out criminals who are forcing the farmers to harvest their nuts unripe. If government can do this, the people, Kogi state government and Nigeria would benefit hugely in the coming season.
Cashew is a brilliant product for this country. It’s one of the most exported product a part from crude oil, now that the govt is ready to get our refineries working and with Dangote coming on, cashew would become the first on the log of exported items and Kogi cashew is going to be unstoppable of govt can create enabling environment for our farmers.
I remember in my recent write up on Kogi rice production boosted by government, I congratulated the government but advised that our attention should be on cashew and not rice. So I see this statement by the commissioner as a vindication.
Let me appeal to the government again that our farmers are suffering and we should help to boost their production.
In Brazil today, what is obtainable is that government is supporting the farmers greatly so my prayers are:
1. Let’s make the right chemicals that kills pest and boost production available. The sufferings of our people would be reduced greatly.
2. Our legislature should make laws that gives stiffer penalties on bush burning, stealing etc to help our farmers so that they won’t be in a rush to harvest nuts that are nut matured.
3. Government should create a guard that will help to to track criminals and guard all communities as these hoodlums now changes tactics from day to night stealing of nuts and farmers are not finding it easy.
4. Finally, the figure given by the commissioner is laughable, so government should keep proper records of tones of cashew we produce by weighing any truck before leaving the state. I believe we are producing millions of tones and we need this record to become clear giants in this area.
Let me congratulate Gov. Yahaya Bello on his two years in office and I pray that God direct him to take actions that will better the lives of our people.
– Salihu Adam Jiddah
Founder, Kogi Liberation Movement
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