HJRBDA CEO Promises to Prosecute Suppliers of Adulterated Farm Inputs, Fertilisers
The Hadejia Jama’are River Basin Development Authority (HJRBDA) has initiated strategies to promote sustainable development, strengthen food security and improve community livelihoods.
According to the managing director of the authority, Rabiu Sulaiman Bichi, the initiatives would include opening more water channels and introducing innovative farming techniques that would conserve water sources.
Among these is introducing farmers to the new technique of using bio-degredable to plant seeds and tubers that would require minimum water to germinate.
He told newsmen in his office in Kano penultimate Tuesday that the authority is committed to transformative journey to boost the socio-economic development of the river basin.
The Managing Director however warned that his Authority would live no stone unturned to ensure the success of these initiatives, particularly warning against the sell by agricultural inputs dealers of adulterated and unwholesome farm inputs promising “them prosecution at the courts of law”.
He decried that Nigerian farmers, particularly in the North, had suffered significant losses due to the unpatriotic actions of some farm inputs’ dealers who sold adulterated fertilisers, seedlings and other inputs.
According to Bichi, the authority will this season, crack down on the dealers of adulterated farm inputs, having established mechanisms to identify and penalise them, urging the public to report any dealers of adulterated farm inputs to the relevant authorities like the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the HJRBDA itself.
He warned that “as these fake products posed serious health risks, including cancer, to Nigerians, my call on the public is to be on the lookout and report anybody found selling adulterated farm inputs to NAFDAC, SON and other relevant authorities”.
“Such adulterated farm inputs”, he added “had made farmers incur losses last season. “This time around, we will be very vigilant to ensure good farm inputs are distributed to farmers and go after those selling adulterated ones and punish them,” he warned.