Senator Shehu Sani has asked the Federal Government to fight squarely the twin-evil of insurgency and banditry ravaging the Northern region of the country instead of locust pests.
The former senator representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District said this in reaction to the N13bn intervention fund approved by the Federal Government for pest control and food production.
The writer turned politician said the people would tackle locust pests by themselves if the government could help them with the armed pests.
In a tweet that’s an admixture of both cynicism and mild jibe, Sanni said, “Kill the bandits and terrorists first so that people can go to the farm and kill the pests themselves. How do you kill locust pests and leave the armed pests?”
Recall that the federal government on Friday had approved N13bn as intervention fund for pest control in 12 northern states to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the nation’s food production.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the 12 states, described as ‘frontline’ states that are to benefit from the fund are Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, Taraba, Yobe and Borno States.
The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development made the disclosure in a statement issued on Saturday.
The Minister, Muhammad Nanono, said the intervention fund was to ensure uninterrupted agricultural activities during the 2020 farming season in the states.
He explained that the fund would also be used to control trans-boundary pests and minimise the impact of COVID – 19 as well as guarantee nutritional and national food security.
