~ Insists farming can yield more revenue than oil
By Ifeizu Joe
Former governor of Anambra State and Presidential Candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Mr Peter Obi has said that Nigeria can feed its citizens and even have enough to export if it invests in agriculture.
Obi stated this yesterday when he visited Mary Agro Farms in Omughu community in Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State. The farm is a 500 hectares of land project, owned by the Catholic Diocese of Enugu.
Obi who donated N20million to the manager of the project said the visit has reinforced his believe that Nigeria has enough land for cultivation of food that can feed the nation.
He said: “The vast land I have seen here is an assurance that we have enough land to cultivate food for ourselves, but we have lazy people, and leaders who are not investing right.
“This is what I have consistently maintained, that Nigeria can feed itself if we do the right thing. We must invest in productivity. If we invest in production and we can start by producing what we eat, and gradually graduate to exporting to other countries.
“We can’t have hungry people everywhere, and yet we have vast land lying uncultivated. We must start by producing what we eat. I want to tell you that if we invest right, we can get more revenue from farming than oil,” Obi said.
Auxiliary Bishop of Enugu Catholic Diocese, Bishop Ernest Obodo, who received the cheque on behalf of the farm described Obi as a lover of humanity.
He reechoed Obi’s believe that if Nigeria invests right, no one would go to bed hungry.
He said: “We know Peter Obi as a man who has a passion to make Nigeria work. I have a passion for agriculture and I believe that no Nigerian should go to bed hungry, because we cannot grow enough food.
“Our problem is that we have corrupt leaders who do not want to invest in the right thing. This farm is on 500 hectares of land. We hope to establish oil mill here, garri processing machine and others. We grow cassava, we are establishing a fish pond too. Our governor has promised to construct the road leading to this place, and we plan to provide over 10,000 jobs to indigenes of this place when we become fully operational.”
