Plateau Rice Farmers Bicker Over Agricultural Loans, Says Don’t Exploit Us Using Duress

Yakubu Busari

 

The Plateau State chapter of Agricultural loan has said that they won’t comply with the conditions given them by the commercial Banks over the Rice Farmers loan owning to failure of the Chairman and the  secretary of Rice Farmers Association of  Nigeria, Plateau State  to disburse the fertilizers, pumping machines ,chemical to them during the  period it was supposed to disbursed.

 

Some of the farmers decried  that the poor harvest last year were they have recorded  low productivity yield but are lamenting that the challenges of funding the irrigation system is inadequately managed.

 

It was gathered that thousands of the beneficiaries who collected agricultural loans for rice farming in Plateau State have declined to pay back the loans collected, a development that may blacklist the state unless something urgent is done.

 

The State Branch of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) and officials of the bank which disbursed the loans from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the State are currently contemplating a warrant of arrest through all the 17 Divisional Police Stations.

 

The state Chairman of Rice farmers Association (RIFAN), Joshua Bitrus who expressed concerns over the development, said the State may be blacklisted.

 

 

He described the situation as highly regrettable saying that such stands taken by the rice farmers in the state is not encouraging.

 

According to him, the association is currently making efforts to contact all the 17 divisional police officers (DPO) to issue warrants of arrest.

 

 

He called on affected farmers to intensify efforts towards the payment of the loans to avoid embarrassment, noting that such behaviors may affect the chances of the state in future.

 

 

He said only four local government areas from the state’s Northern Senatorial Zone   did not default payments as stipulated.

 

 

The Farmers accused the state officials of corrupt attitude in selection of the beneficiaries based  on party and religious affiliation, as most of them are poor and vulnerable who saw the exercise as a free will from their  party faithful.

 

Those who were given the above mentioned rice, chemical, and the fertilizer are still leaking their   wounds that from the period the state chapter disbursed till now they didn’t realize any profit talk less of getting back their original money.