REPORT OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF FARMERS (GAF) HELD AT DUTSE, JIGAWA STATE ON MONDAY, 9TH JUNE 2014 BY M A C ODU PREAMBLE The main purpose of the assembly of farmers was to inaugurate the newly elected executive council of the apex organisation of Nigerian Farmers in accordance with the constitution of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN). Five members were invited from each state. Chairman of each state chapter, Woman Leader, Youth Leader, Secretary and Treasurer were components of each delegation. Not every state had a complete complement of each delegation. The author of this unsolicited report represented Chairman Imo State Chapter of AFAN and chairman of the state’s Funding Committee. Arrangements for the Assembly were shoddy. It was apparent that the past council had little preparation for the assembly. There was a poorly prepared brochure for the event and it was loaded with errors of schedule and editing. It has been a turbulent past for All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), fraught with constitutional breeches and arbitrary actions of past officials for lack of resources to chart a course for independent existence as a private sector institution which governments have failed to revere as the largest institution of the country capable of determining the fate of Nigeria in its main mission of providing food security for all time. Although the constitution exists very little had been done to operate it and use it prudently for protecting farmers and assuring its pride of place in Nigeria Project. Actions of governments of the Federation of Nigeria have been at best desultory. Farmers Income and capital have enjoyed a steep downward slope on account of lethargic government policies. Profligacy of government was apparent; and absence of focus on all important food sector of Nigeria Project and preference for food importation have dealt a fatal blow to domestic food production through the past forty-three years. Policies of government had not been diligently enforced. Infrastructure for attention to farming over the years was quickly abandoned as soon as new administrations take over reins of power since allurement of power seekers favour new capital projects. Ruins of public sector projects awaiting completion and proper management litter the landscape. The peasant farmer has known little respite from food losses due to poor preservation packaging and distribution facilities in a milieu of patronage and insecure importation of food by an increasing majority. Credit should be allocated to the current minister of agriculture for his attempt to reach farming people through a digital process that begins with registration and wholesomely ends with delivery of inputs directly to registered farmers with contemporary use of GSM technology. Leadership of Farmers has not been effective through the years to affect the size of capital available to farming community in spite of touted programmes like Operation Feed the Nation, OFN, Directorate of Foods Roads and Rural Infrastructure, DEFRI, Green Revolution, and other recent uncoordinated versions of the above down to the current Transformation Agenda of the present admiration; there has not been any remarkable redirection of the drift of the past forty-three years toward restoration of agriculture as the key toward sustained development of Nigeria economy that was once pride and source of stability of her economy during the years of her regional structure. Efforts of AFAN, inaugurated in 2004 to give attention to agriculture and food security have failed on account of lethargy of governments to address farming capital and feeble attention of financial institutions to address government dedicated and intervention funds to provide investment capital to the most sensitive contributor to enduring productivity in horizontal and vertical paradigms. There have not been appropriate linkages between research institutes in the country, extension personnel (where they exist) and the farming community. Food production had been on a steep downward slope before the current national effort. Food import bills have known astronomical increases in recent times. Farm incomes have plummeted over the past four decades and counting with increasing evidence of poverty among farming folks. There will be need to stimulate protection for farming people against importation of food of all categories where such can be produced locally with appropriate effort of both government and farmers. A new executive of AFAN was elected at National Level to breathe some new verve into the apex organisation of farmers. An Architect, Farmer and Technocrat, Mallam Kabiru Ibrahim, urbane, humble statured and eloquent, who has paid his dues as an architect with considerable exposure has been elected to provide impetus to a new AFAN. The event at Dutse was programmed to acquaint him with a critical core of his constituency and provide a platform for farmers to share his vision for farmers in a new computer literate leadership and receive a barrage of woes of farming community for reversal policy formulation. Governor of Jigawa State, host of the farmers’ assembly, Alhaji Sule Lamido was on hand to inaugurate the new council at the behest of the immediate past president of AFAN, former governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Abdulahi Adamu. It was an anticlimax of a sort for Governor Sule Lamido to fail to provide for guests to his state basic snacks in screaming contrast with past events like in Adamawa that took on form as a carnival of repast of variety of foods and beverages from farm productive farm houses of hosts. Governor Lamido’s jab that the gathering of the most important body of the Nigerian Nation was ‘composed of consumers’ (rather than farmers) showed him off as a poor contender to the presidency of the nation. A tour of the city of Dutse, to worsen matters, showed no farming content. Respite was provided by the new president of AFAN from his agro-industrial empire as remedy to state lapse did not escape President Kabiru Ibrahim’s reaction to the fast-talking governor’s swipe in his acceptance speech. Papers that could have been read were held in abeyance till a future date. Disgruntled delegates had a difficulty finding accommodation to spend the night after a general meeting that stretched into morning of the departure day. Government had set nothing up to show hospitality to delegates that planned for a three-day event with sufficient government padding. Dutse lost an opportunity to shine for lack of government support. ARCHITECT KABIRU IBRAHIM’S VISION The president has had exposure in Architecture which has both rural and urban components in its discipline in environment planning. His branching out from conventional city-environment sector of his profession to rural sector of the bipolar discipline was properly informed by the imbalance he had observed in the lopsided evolution of Nigeria Project. He decided to cast his lot with the rural sector in reverence for the majority. He vowed to address the rural sector with seventy percent of the population and work force in order to assure maximum contribution to growth of the country. The president succinctly averred that the image of farmers had to be built on firm foundation from beginning of his leadership. He was going to ensure that government would have to be persuaded to recognize the role of the farming community in the future of the country through focused attention to resources and image of the farmer which he intends to construct with formidable foundation. The farmer he persuaded should not be poor. He would set up directorates that would be manned in such a manner that leaders of AFAN would not be in want during his term. He would create painless avenues for capital formation like ID cards. He would stress capital and income delivery to farming folk with commensurate income to all drivers of the policy of his administration in order to sustain zest and sustenance of dividends to all farmers in the country. This author suggested cooperative movement anchored on love for one another and a steely resolve to raise own capital for the formation of a nationwide microfinance bank for direct funding of farmers with integrity and probity. It was necessary to stimulate warehouses and capital trading points along with commodity exchanges to assure farmers of increasing income and decreasing post-harvest losses alongside delivery of quality commodities to industrial concerns cognate with agricultural produce consumption. President undertook to approach government and its organs from a position of strength of the farming people with appropriate social stature and integrity for cognate policy formulation and advantages of restriction of imports as soon as productivity levels appreciate. After all, he wrapped up farmers should be affluent and self-sufficient in any self-sustaining economy. He reeled out plans for the farming people which will be dilated upon at constitutionally established organs of AFAN and used to power farmers into sustainable orbit. Although this author suggested applying for a site in Central Area of a neighbourhood in Abuja for AFAN Head Office, President was resolute on leasing an imposing office which can be quickly commissioned for use in his consuming quest for image for farmers. He probably was convinced that seeking land for development of an office would delay his intensive work of giving farmers early relevance in national development schemes. He solicited the full support of all members of the National Working Committee and National Executive Committee and urged all farmers to imbibe social responsibility for their own kind, love and diligence for food production, preservation, distribution and value-adding agro-industrial concerns. Delegates examined unique priorities of farmers across the land and reached action lines for the future based on proper registration of farmers and diligent pursuit of programmes of development of the country’s agricultural potentials to be announced after appropriate consultation with governments. Six committees would be set up to examine aspects of the task of repositioning farmers in the Nigeria project. The president concluded his brilliant unveiling of his trajectory with his declaration that a new era for farmers had arrived for farmers, and urged all states to prepare themselves for a productivity revolution based on mutual love and respect, cooperation, diligence and integrity. He finally accepted a popularly canvassed view of the assembly that consultations will be embarked upon timeously with organs of government for strategy formulation and diligent programme formulation and implementation at all levels. The General Assembly of farmers stood adjourned at 1 am on Tuesday 10th June 2014. No Farmer, No Nation! Great Farmers, Great Nation!
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 18:08:02 +0000
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