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By Wole Mosadomi, Minna
NIGER State is particularly famous for the agricultural activities of its people. And this possibly explains why within a period of 15 years successive governments in the state had procured about 500 tractors to boost mechanised farming and open up rural roads within the state. For example, the immediate past administration under the leadership of Dr. Muazu Babangida Aliyu took delivery of 200 units of tractors to enhance mechanised farming and also to rehabilitate feeder roads within the 25 local government areas of the state under his tenure.
Similarly, his successor and present administration of Governor Abubakar Sani Bello in June 2018 took delivery of 130 tractors at a cost of N2.2billion which was distributed to “genuine” farmers at 25 percent subsidy to boost food production not only in the state alone but in the country. The governor during the flagging off of the farming season in 2018 also revealed that ”additional one hundred tractors are being expected through the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending, NIRSAL”.
On July 2, 2018 during the flag-off of the construction/rehabilitation of rural roads under the second phase of the construction of 403 rural roads under the implementation of rural access mobility project-II (RAMP-2) at Kampani Bobi in Mariga local government area, the governor declared that opening up rural roads and boosting agriculture through mechanisation was going to be his priority, hence, the huge investment by his administration on the Tractors.
Governor Bello declared then that: ”In the first phase of this project, we were able to record the rehabilitation of 176km rural roads. In addition, 20 river crossing bridges were also constructed which greatly facilitated linkage of several communities in the State. This further boosted the socio-economic activities in the benefiting rural communities. The administration is working out modalities for surface dressing of these roads due to traffic build up on the routes so as to increase their lifespan.
The governor regretted that local government councils in the state have not lived up to expectations in the construction of feeder roads despite the procurement of heavy duty earth-moving equipment few years ago. He directed them to resuscitate their various works departments in order to meet peoples’ demand for capital projects, especially in the area of roads construction. According to him: “Some of these heavy equipment can be used to constructs or grade most of our roads in the rural areas. The people are not asking for much, they need their roads to be graded and culvets provided in some place”.
He therefore directed the local government chairmen to repair the over 25 earth-moving equipment abandoned at councils secretariats over the years pointing out that they should cultivate maintenance culture in order to avoid wastage of government funds.
This public declaration by the Governor actually raised the hope of the residents, who became expectant of more of the rehabilitation of their roads, while farmers looked forward to more tractors to boost their farming. That has however become history as the hopes of the people had been dashed. Indeed, there are agitations by members of the public who are eager to know what has become of the tractors purchased by previous administrations and the present one.
Just last week, the state House of Assembly set up a seven-man committee to investigate the alleged disappearance of over 72 tractors belonging to the 25 local government areas of the state.
This followed a Matter of Urgent Public Importance moved at plenary on Tuesday, last week by Abdulmalik Madaki Bosso, member representing Bosso Constituency in the state House of Assembly.
Bosso had declared that on May 23, 2022, the Niger State chapter of Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees, NULGE, wrote a letter informing the Speaker of the House of Assembly, complaining of the disappearance of over 72 tractors belonging to the state local governments.
The lawmaker further explained that on July 26, 2018, the Ministry for Local Government, via a letter with a reference No. MLGCO/N/569/1/3 with caption: “Proposal For Refurbishment of Local Government Tractors,” mandated the 25 local government councils to submit the said over 72 tractors to one Messr Dangaroga Allah for refurbishment.
Bosso added that four years after the tractors were taken to Messr Dangaroga Allah for refurbishment, they are yet to be delivered back to the state for onward delivery to the respective local government areas and that no congent reason had been given why the tractors have not been returned.
The lawmaker thereby called on the House to as a matter of urgency and sincerity of purpose investigate the circumstances leading to the sudden disappearance of the tractors.
In a swift reaction, the state government declared that there are no missing tractors as being alleged in some quarters.
Commissioner for Local Government, Community Development and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Kabiru Abbas Musa who disclosed this while briefing journalists at the Government House, Minna, said there was no record to show that the Ministry had entered into agreement with any contractor for the repairs of its tractors, 61 of which he said belong to the 25 local governments talk less of talking of disappearance.
According to him: ”The tractors are intact and available. Governance is a diligent process which has adherence to due process as such could not understand why someone is claiming N100m without any contract agreement.”
Also at the briefing, the state Commissioner for Agricultural and Rural Development, Alhaji Yusuf Mohammed Gunu, said the ministry has auctioned out 103 of the tractors stressing thus: “The auction became necessary because most of them have outlived their lifespan and have turned to scrap as they have spent over 20 years.
“In doing this, the Board of Surveyors followed due process in ensuring transparency during the auctioning and some of the tractors were sold between N2m to N2.5m. The unserviceable tractors met all the terms for auctioning and those that bought them are expected to further provide a social responsibility for their communities by making the tractors available for hiring to them,” he declared. However, even with these explations from the state government, members of the public are not satisfied as the question continued to be asked in different quarters: ”Where are our tractors? If they are available, we want to see them back in our different local government areas where they are needed”.