Yesterday: Zulum returns to recovered New Marte, wants CBDA’s massive irrigation farming revived by July

Borno State Governor Professor Babagana Umara Zulum yesterday went back to New Marte, a former stronghold of the Boko Haram in the shores of the Lake Chad to explore how major irrigation farming activities of the Chad Basin Development Authority (CBDA) could be restored by July, this year.

In December 2019, Zulum was in New Marte and it was the first civilian visit to the ’no-go-area’ in more than five years since insurgents attacked the agro community forcing residents to flee while the CBDA shutdown federal government’s activities in an area which was said to have more 67,000 hectares of fertile land for large scale irrigation.

New Marte is located in Marte Local Government Area in Northern Borno and the entire local government area had come under the control of insurgents until the Nigeria military recaptured it and has now given goahead for civilian reoccupation.

Governor Zulum, in company of CBDA’s Managing Director, Engineer Abba Bukar, Commissioner for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, Commissioner for Higher Education who hails from Marte, that of local governments, flew from Maiduguri onboard a military helicopter.

During the unscheduled

visit,

Zulum assessed varieties of vandalized irrigation equipment, a power house, a workshop and dozens of buildings used by the CBDA in active days of engaging thousands of farm families.

“I am here with the MD of CBDA, Engr. Abba Bukar in New Marte, insha’Allah, we will partner with them to resuscitate Marte irrigation centre. This will provide means of livelihood” the governor said before flying back to Maiduguri.