A pan-Nigerian movement, The Alternative, on Wednesday took its voter awareness campaign to farmers in Ogun State, urging them to participate fully in the ongoing pre-registration of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) ahead of the next general election.
The advocacy meeting, held in Abeokuta with members of Agbe Gbe Lu Agro Network Limited, was led by the convener of The Alternative, Otunba Segun Showunmi, who was represented by the Southwest Chairman of the movement, Olusola Salau.
Showunmi described farmers as a trustworthy bloc capable of influencing credible change at the polls, stressing the need for them to mobilise their communities for voter registration.
“These people are not politicians; they are reliable when it comes to real vote changes. We are also calling on the governor to recognise this group as an important one to empower.
“If given adequate equipment and support, Ogun farmers will significantly boost food production in the state,” he said.
The convener, who noted that he remains a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), nonetheless appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to prioritise farmers’ welfare, recalling the governor’s previous interest in agricultural development.
Speaking on behalf of the farmers, Baale Agbe, Fohunola Ajani, accused politicians of hijacking government empowerment programmes meant for farmers.
According to him, agricultural equipment and support packages often end up in the hands of politicians, who later sell them off, leaving genuine farmers to struggle with rudimentary tools like hoes and cutlasses.
Also, a 70-year-old farmer, Ojeyinka Bamidele, lamented the government’s bias towards women and youth in its training and funding initiatives while neglecting older farmers still actively engaged in food production.
Bamidele explained that many youths abandon agriculture after receiving grants, training, or equipment, whereas elderly farmers remain committed to the fields.
“When they want to do training, they forget that we, the older ones, are still on the farm. They focus only on women and youths. Many of those youths, after collecting training, money, and materials, leave the farm. But we, the older ones, are still here working.
Even when they want to give loans, the conditions are so stringent that we cannot access them. We want the government to make loans easier for real farmers who are actually tilling the land,” he said.
The farmers, however, pledged their commitment to mobilising rural communities for the ongoing voter registration exercise, while demanding greater inclusion in government policies and support programmes.
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