The Lucky Aiyedatiwa-led government in Ondo State has stated that it is doing everything possible to enhance food security and create employment opportunities for the people of the state.
According to the government, part of the efforts was to ensure the safety of farmers across the state, as it has deployed military officers to the Ala area in Akure North Local Government Area of the state, where some herders allegedly attacked and killed some farmers.
The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa on Agriculture and Agric business, Mr Rotim Akinsola, disclosed this while speaking with journalists on Wednesday, in Akure, the state capital.
Akinsola declared that the farms and forests in the state were safe for farmers to do their work, following the safety measures put in place by the government.
He said, “Our forests are safe, especially from criminal activities. All we are doing right now we sending over 22 (military) officers to Ala to take over the land from the miscreants. They are presently there. Military officers are in Alaa right now securing the place for us to be able to take the land back from the hoodlums.
“So we’re getting investors who have the capacity to move in there and start to clear large expanse of the land. That will enable other farmers to move in and do their work without any fear or intimidation. With the clearance, we believe, this will deter the criminal Fulanis from having a place to actually hide. That’s what we’re doing right now.”
He noted that the current administration in the state was making efforts to encourage youths to be engaged in farming by creating employment opportunities for them .
Under Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s policy on agribusiness, we aim to encourage our youths to pursue careers in agriculture by implementing the sanatorium farms system, which we are currently establishing. If the land were easily accessible, those things would have been fast-tracked for moving. However, we must fight for every inch of land that belongs to the government so that it can be utilised effectively.
“So we are engaging more private land to get this done until we can resolve these farmers on our crops land. The encroachment is quite bad. We have 16 forest reserves. We cannot really boast where we are going to put the next investor except we go there and plant,” Akinsola stated.
Credit: punchng.com
