Ekiti community seeks speedy passage of agric college bil

The people of Ise Ekiti in the Ise/Orun Local Government area of Ekiti State have appealed to the House of Representatives to expedite action on the passage of the bill for the establishment of a college of agriculture in their community.

The traditional ruler, the Arinjale of Ise Ekiti, Oba Adetunji Ajayi, said establishing an agricultural institution in the community, which he said is endowed with vast fertile land for diverse cash and food crops would contribute largely to addressing food insecurity in the country.

According to a statement by the National Chairman, Ise-Ekiti Development Foundation, Elder Tunji Falana, made available in Ado Ekiti on Monday, Oba Ajayi, spoke recently in his presentation before the House of Representatives Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions in Nigeria.

Ajayi, a former University of Lagos don, who described himself as a farmer, said, “We are talking of food security, this is an inward-looking approach solution to the economic problem of Nigeria which President Bola Tinubu is trying to do. Ise Ekiti is readily available to join hands with the Federal Government to provide inward solution to the problem we are having.

“We know about a lot of rice production going on in the North, but we want it to be done across Nigeria and Ise Ekiti will be readily available to cooperate with the Federal Government in terms of cocoa production, cassava etc. We have land readily available. These are among the reasons we appeal to the House to give our bill a special and accelerated hearing.

“Ise Ekiti is not here alone, but in conjunction with Ekiti State Government. We have a forest reserve that is gazetted, that the government is controlling. The government has approved and given us the go-ahead to locate this Federal College of Agriculture beside the forest reserve.

“We have nothing less than 100,000 hectares of land for that. I want to assure the Federal Ministry of Agriculture that the land is free from encumbrances. Our people are ready, we are only waiting for you,” the monarch said.

An Ise Ekiti indigene and Emeritus Professor Philip Adetiloye, in his presentation, said, “Ise Ekiti has potential for agriculture. A veritable way to lift agriculture is for the FG to provide the College of Agriculture where we can train students and farmers, provide research and also extension to farmers to make sure that Ekiti State can produce meaningfully to ensure food security, employment and job creation in Nigeria”.

He said, “We (Ise Ekiti) need the federal College of Agriculture where we can train experts. The number of farmers is dwindling because we are ageing. Our fathers were farmers, but as they are dying, the lands are being abandoned, and production is going down.

“We need a young crop of experts who will be farm managers and who will be farmers to manage these resources,” he said.

Earlier, the House of Representatives member representing Ekiti South West, Ikere and Ise/Orun Federal Constituency, Adeniyi Ojuawo, welcomed his constituents into the National Assembly and stressed the need for the college of agriculture to be sited in the community.

The IDC Chairman, Falana, who lauded the presentations of the indigenes before the House Committee, also appreciated Ise Ekiti’s sons and daughters in attendance including a prince in the kingdom, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye