Tackle insecurity for farming to resume, NHRC tells security chiefs
The National Human Rights Commission has called on the nation’s security chiefs to tackle insecurity so that farmers who were displaced from their farms can resume.
The commission’s Executive Secretary, Tony Ojukwu, made the call at an event tagged “Technical Roundtable Discussion: Exploring the Economic Output of Nigeria” organised by ActionAid on Wednesday in Abuja.
Ojukwu said insecurity was affecting people’s standard of living because farmers have been displaced from their farms.
He said it was important that a conducive environment is provided for them to return to their farms.
He noted, “Already, you can see how insecurity is affecting the standard of living of the people. The farms are not working anymore; people in those farms are being kidnapped, so they are afraid to go to the farms. There is a need for security for people to go to the farms.
“The issue of safety during farming is very critical because we must talk of food, social and human security. If the farms are not safe, there will be no food security. Every human being has the right to an adequate standard of living which includes the right to food, shelter, and health services.
“So, it is very important for those in charge of security services, the NSA, the police, Army, and DSS to be made to account to make sure that our farmers go to the farms so that we should not face hunger.”
Speaking earlier, the Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Andrew Mamedu, said as concerned citizens, their focus was majorly on the current economic situation and how it is impacting various subsectors in the country.
Mamedu, noted, “If you look at the inflation, exchange rate, the cost of living generally, one will wonder how are the citizens surviving?
“We will pay a visit to the National Security Adviser, and say these are the practical things we are supposed to do so that we can go back to our farms to produce, that will generally reduce the cost of food and as citizens how we can support our government and how we can hold them accountable.”
