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VC Urges Farmers’ Return, Allays Insecurity Fears
The Vice-Chancellor of Taraba State University, Sunday Bako, on Wednesday allayed the fears of Nigerian farmers over the reported cases of insecurity nationwide.
Bako made the remarks during an interview with newsmen on the sidelines of the ongoing 2025 In-House Research Review of the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, held at the institute’s premises, Idi-Ayunre, Ibadan, in the Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State.
He advised farmers to return to their farms, especially during this rainy season, to make food produce more available for the teeming Nigerian population.
The VC described their experiences as a phase that would soon pass, saying, “Nigerian farmers will smile again.
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“Nigerian farmers should be very hopeful with the current policies being put in place by the Federal Government. There is hope, and the farmers will smile again.”
Bako said the policies, aimed at supporting farmers generally, focus on increasing agricultural production, improving farmers’ livelihoods, and ensuring food security in Nigeria.
The Executive Director of CRIN, Patrick Adebola, had earlier explained that the yearly in-house review was a day set aside to inform the major stakeholders (farmers) in the sector about the direction of the institute for that year.
“The yearly in-house review is a day set aside to tell our major stakeholders, mainly the farmers, the direction of our research. You cannot do research in isolation. You have to involve farmers so that they can tell you where the shoe pinches most, and that shapes the direction of our research.
“So, it is very important to call our stakeholders every year, showcase the type of research we want to carry out, so they can contribute and guide us on where our research should focus,” he said.
Adebola lamented that lack of funding was the major challenge affecting research institutes in Nigeria.
He further stressed that research institutes were failing because they lacked the capacity to obtain enough seedlings.
“These are economic crops that can transform the Nigerian economy. We know what is happening now — everybody is shying away from oil, and the only alternative is to go back to the land, to go back to the farm. Let’s focus on plantations and crops, which will bring economic benefits, uplift farmers, and transform their livelihoods,” he added.
In his keynote address themed, “Advances in Varietal Development of Cocoa, Kola, Cashew, Coffee and Tea for Sustainable Economic Growth,” the National President of the Cocoa Farmers Association of Nigeria, Adeola Adegoke, said these crops, traditionally seen as economic commodities, have now emerged as powerful instruments for socio-economic transformation and environmental sustainability.
Adegoke, who is also the Global President of the Cocoa Farmers Alliance of Africa, explained that these crops not only enhance rural livelihoods and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s GDP and foreign exchange but also regenerate soils, enhance biodiversity, and build climate resilience.
He said, “These perennial crops when integrated into agroforestry systems, improve soil structure, increase organic matter, and offer long-term carbon sequestration potential.
“The Nigerian agenda to upscale our cocoa production from the present 280,000–300,000 metric tonnes to 500,000 metric tonnes in the next two years must have led President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council’s approval for the creation of the National Cocoa Management Board.
“This is to establish an institution that will regulate, support, develop, and promote the Nigerian cocoa industry along sustainable practices, without the board being involved in cocoa buying and selling.”
He therefore urged Nigerians to embrace the opportunity to transform the nation’s agricultural systems into engines of green growth, social justice, and global leadership.
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Stop Politicising EFCC Investigation To Blackmail President, APC Chieftain Tells Opposition Parties
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has cautioned members of opposition parties under the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigation to stop blackmailing President Bola Tinubu and focus on proving their innocence.
Oyintiloye, a member of the defunct APC Presidential Campaign Council, said this while speaking with newsmen on Sunday in Osogbo.
He said that the investigations being carried out by the anti-graft agency on some members of the opposition parties, based on petitions against them, were purely a constitutional matter and in line with international best practices.
Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker said that being a member of the opposition parties should not be seen as immunity against investigation into any alleged financial infractions whenever there were genuine reasons for it.
According to him, members of the ruling party are also being investigated by the EFCC whenever petitions alleging financial infractions are raised against them.
Oyintiloye said that the EFCC has a statutory mandate to investigate financial infractions involving public office holders across party lines without bias or favouritism.
The APC chieftain said that neither Tinubu nor the anti-graft agency would be swayed by unfounded allegations of witch-hunting but would rather continue to do what is right and just for the country.
“The EFCC has a mandate to investigate financial infractions against anyone, irrespective of political affiliations.
“Linking the President to the investigation of alleged financial infractions by opposition members in the name of politics is totally wrong.
“Whether you are a member of the ruling party or opposition, you are not immune to financial investigation.
“I want to caution members of the opposition parties to stop politicising what the EFCC is doing and prove their innocence, if any.
“President Tinubu is a man of honour and integrity, and he will not compromise his ideals in the name of politics. So, it is no longer business as usual,” he said.
According to him, there is no room for graft under the Tinubu administration
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has emerged winner of the Ghari/Tsanyawa supplementary election in Kano state
The returning officer, Professor Muhammad Waziri of Bayero University, declared Garba Ya’u Gwarmai of the APC winner with 31,472 votes
Waziri defeated the candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Yusuf Ali Maigado, who polled 27,931 votes
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has secured victory in the Ghari/Tsanyawa supplementary election held in Kano state.
Announcing the results on Sunday morning, August 17, the returning officer (RO), Professor Muhammad Waziri from Bayero University, declared APC candidate Garba Gwarmai the winner with a total of 31,472 votes.
He defeated the candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Yusuf Maigado, who polled 27,931 votes, according to The Punch.
The supplementary poll was conducted after the initial election in the constituency was declared inconclusive. With a margin of 3,541 votes, Gwarmai’s victory marks a key win for the APC as the party continues to reinforce its influence across the state.
Meanwhile, the NNPP won the Bagwai/Shanono state assembly by-election in Kano state.
Daily Trust and Vanguard noted this update.
Announcing the result at 12:36 a.m. on Sunday, August 17, the RO for the election, Prof. Hassan Adamu Shitu, declared the NNPP candidate, Ali Hassan Kiyawa, winner with 16,198 votes, defeating the APC candidate, Ahmad Muhammad Kadamu, who polled 5,347 votes.
Former Governor of Niger State, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, has said that the administration of President Bola Tinubu is performing well but lacks an effective communication strategy to relay its achievements to Nigerians.
Aliyu made the statement on the Thursday edition of Arise Television’s ‘The Morning Show’, while reacting to the outcome of a recent public accountability session held in Kaduna.
Aliyu, reflecting on the discussions at the Kaduna Forum, said the government is facing public dissatisfaction not because it hasn’t delivered, but because it is failing to tell its own story effectively.
The ex-governor said it is proper for political leaders in the North to make demands from Tinubu’s administration since the bulk of the votes that took power came from the region.
“Let the people understand what is happening on the ground. If by what we say that 63/64 percent of the vote came from the north, it is only logical that the north will be expecting so much from the government.
“But from what we have seen so far is that the government is doing well but they do not know how to communicate very well,” he said.
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