MR PRESIDENT, NIGERIANS ARE HUNGRY

The soaring price of good and services since the removal of petroleum subsidy is frightening. The prices of grains and other essential food items in local markets have skyrocketed beyond the reach of the common man. The World Bank has released a damning report of four million Nigerians who slid into poverty in the last six months and warned that another 7.1m are likely to fall into poverty by the end of the year unless government quickly rolled out palliatives to cushion the effects of subsidy removal. Even before the removal of subsidy, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) had predicted that Nigeria would face imminent famine this year.

FAO prediction was premised on the ongoing war in Ukraine, banditry and farmer/herder’s crisis in North West and North-central respectively. There is no gainsaying the fact, Katsina, Zamfara and Sokoto States have been hit hard by the activities of bandits. Peasant farmers have been sacked or driven away from their ancestral homes. The worrisome activities of bandits are affecting food production, and spiking up food prices leading to hunger.  

  The federal government has planned to disburse N500 billion palliatives to Nigerians. Under the plan, N8000 will be distributed to each of 12 million selected households for a period of six months. In the short time, the safety net will temporary relieve poverty among the beneficiaries ,but in the long run, when the payment stops, poverty may increase.

Instead of doling out billions of naira to Nigerians, the government should subsidise farms product, health and improve irrigation to augment seasonal farming. While the immediate past administration of Muhammadu Buhari had opened some borders to ameliorate food shortage, the Tinubu led administration should follow suit and open the remaining ones. The rising cost of essential food products calls for prompt action. Insecurity which plagues the North should be squarely addressed to guarantee food security. It is unarguable to say, millions of Nigerians hardly eat one square meal, let alone three a day.

 Ibrahim Mustapha, Pambegua, Kaduna State