Members of the Farmers’ Community Association, Ikole-Ekiti, have called on the governor-elect, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, to empower them with affordable fertiliser and soft loans to boost food production in the state.
The Chairman of the association in Ikole Local Government Area, Mr Olatunji Ayegbusi, made the call in an interview with newsmen on Tuesday in Ikole-Ekiti.
According to him, the distribution of farm inputs, especially fertiliser, has been politicised.
Ayegbusi alleged that whenever the Federal Government distributed farm inputs, such as fertiliser, through the state’s Ministry of Agriculture, the officials would not allow the inputs to get to the farmers.
He also alleged that the government officials in charge of the farm inputs were selling them while others were using them on their farms.
“On behalf of the farmers’ association in Ikole-Ekiti, I want to appeal to our governor-elect, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, to empower farmers by giving us fertiliser and soft loans, to enhance food production in the state.
“Federal Government has been giving out fertilisers to farmers across the federation, but our own allocation is being diverted.
“We farmers are suffering in the hands of kidnappers, herdsmen, and the farm inputs that we need to make our work easier are too expensive to procure.
“I want to appeal to the state government to consider our plight and set aside a budget for agriculture and empowerment of farmers in Ekiti,” he said.
Ayegbusi urged the governor-elect to give priority to the welfare of registered farmers’ associations.
According to him, any inputs and incentives he wishes to distribute to the farmers should be channelled through the chairmen of farmers’ associations in all the 16 local government areas of the state.
(NAN)