2023: Nigerian farmers vow to mobilize 17 million votes for Tinubu

The Agro Commodities Directorate of the Presidential Campaign Council in the All Progressives Congress says it is committed to delivering 17 million votes to the party’s presidential candidate, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu at the February 25 presidential poll.

Director of the Directorate, Alhaji Abubakar Bello disclosed this at the National Stakeholders Engagement and Mobilization summit, which held at the APC presidential campaign headquarters, on Thursday in Abuja.

The Agro Commodities Directorate is a platform that comprise of over 100 recognised commodity associations cutting across agricultural production, manufacturing, processing, marketing of food and cash crops, condiments, tree crops, fisheries and livestock among others.

Alhaji Bello noted that the APC government have always supported agriculture which is vital to the growth of any economy hence the need for continuity. According to him, the agricultural policies of the present administration had led to the provision of prerequisite infrastructure that have the potential to uplift the sector sustainably in the years ahead .

According to him, the Tinubu/Shettima manifesto has also revealed that the APC presidential candidate is keen to growing the agricultural sector inorder boost the country’s economy.

He said “Representatives of all these structures are in this venue today to affirm their support to the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential ticket, and on their behalf, I wish to inform this gathering that they have all been working so hard since the inauguration of the Directorate on November 2022 with the aim of delivering at least 17 million votes to the APC Presidential Candidate during the upcoming election taking place at the end of this month.

“We all wish to acknowledge that since the advent of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, the country had seen consistent, expansive and wholistic approach to developing the Agricultural Sector through its value chains including the formulation of appropriate policies which had led to the provision of prerequisite infrastructure that have the potential to uplift the sector sustainably in the years ahead.

“As we speak, the country had reached a stage of producing and processing what it needs in food crops and is gearing for export of cash and tree crops, tubers, livestock and fisheries. Such favourable policies enabled the investments in the construction of vital futuristic structures such as the Lekki deep seaport in Lagos, the dry port in Kano and Kaduna, and the railways which will all aid transportation of agricultural commodities from production hubs to processing and marketing hubs.

“The Agro Commodities groups had to ensure full support and ensure we mobilize all our teaming members to usher in Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the only government that will not only continue with these successes, but has the capacity, ability, vision and doggedness to double the speed at which the sector transforms in order to cater for the projected massive population leap in the coming years.

“We cannot afford to allow in a clueless government that had already promised to open the National borders and take us back to the era of massive food and weapons import and make our over 70 newly established integrated rice mills and other Agricultural investments to become moribund and our youth unemployed”.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammed Abubakar in his address, stated that for seven years consecutively, the Agricultural sector has contributed more to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) than any other sector.

“I have no doubt in my mind that the incoming government Insha Allah of Bola Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu and Kashim Shettima will do the same justice for Agric as this current administration is doing because that is the only way that we can sustain our developmental activities to improve our economy”, he added.

Also, the Secretary of the Directorate, Retson Tedheke said the group is already carrying out mobilisation for the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential ticket.

“This Summit is to bring those particularly involved in the Agbado and cassava infrastructure in Nigeria. The reality is this, you build on the local infrastructure to sustain an economic development that has the interest of the people at heart.

“When are we going to get off oil? How much can we spend to get agriculture to work, focus on the challenges in the agricultural space, solve insecurity problem, make sure that farmers access fund and then look at someone who believes in the Nigerian dream and then we can visualise that to grow the Nigerian economy.

“Over five million farming members are committed to the course. We want to be able to take that number to about 12.5 million across the country” he said.

Reacting to issue of farmer/herders clash, he said the APC presidential aspirant is committed to addressing the issue of insecurity headlong.

“His manifesto speak to what the farmers challenges are, if you solve security, you solve that problem.

“If you solve the food problem in this country, if you create food security, you create social security, you create economy security, you create cultural security. So the manifesto speaks to the Nigerian challenge”, he added.