PMB should shore up food security
The recent announcement by the National Bureau of Statistics NBS that Nigeria has successfully exited the worst economic recession in 29 years brought joy and a sense of relief to many Nigerians. This wonderful news came at a time when President Buhari has already returned to the country having spent a couple of months in the UK receiving medical attention. Upon his return, President Buhari received the most unprecedented reception and solidarity from Nigerians. No any Nigerian leader in the past was ever accorded such a very befitting gesture.
The love and passion that Nigerians have for President Buhari is welldocumented, he still remained very popular among the masses despite the fact that many of them could not enjoy three square meals a day. The level of hunger in the country is very frightening because prices of essential commodities have gone beyond the point of acceptable affordability. Now that the President is back in the country, his first priority should naturally be the issue of food insecurity and hunger in the country.
On this basis therefore, President Buhari should explore the possibility of liaising with the National Assembly and the Judiciary to legally use all the money recovered from corrupt Nigerians to establish strategic grains reserve in each and every local government in the country where essential foodstuffs like rice, wheat, maize, millet and so on could be sold to Nigerians at a very subsidised and affordable prices.
These strategic grains reserve could then be handed over to some trusted people at the local government level to be selected by the people themselves. The general idea is that government will be able to easily bring down prices of essential commodities through this process while simultaneously tackling hunger that has been ravaging individuals in the country. Nigerians have been very patient and supportive of the Buhari administration, and majority of them are still optimistic that this administration will achieve great success in the long run. It is on this note that President Buhari should be advised to consolidate on his commendable conditional cash transfer CCT programme that has already taken off in many states by providing us with enough food because majority of Nigerians are hungry. The only possible way the Buhari administration can reciprocate our gesture is through food security.
Bashir Shehu Yusuf, Gezawa, Kano State.