The African Democratic Congress (ADC) said the Federal Government’s claim of increased local production of food is false and dishonest, because many farmers, especially in the North, who can boost food production, have been displaced by bandits.
ADC, in a statement on Monday by the interim National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, also said the government’s so-called drop in food prices is misleading.
The party accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) led government of hoarding imported food while millions of Nigerians go hungry.
“Contrary to what is being celebrated in official circles, the reality on the ground, as confirmed by the voices of struggling farmers and families across the country, is that the Tinubu government is manipulating food prices and weaponising hunger for political gains,” ADC said.
According to the party, the reported drop in the prices of some food items is artificial, and it attributed it to the removal of import duties that resulted in the flooding of the market with cheap foreign food.
“It is neither evidence of sound policy nor proof of increased local production. And while that may offer momentary relief in food prices, it has, and will, come at the heavy cost of sabotaging local farmers who can no longer compete due to soaring input costs, especially fertilisers, and worsening insecurity,” the party warned.
It wondered how the government could claim that its policies are encouraging domestic production at a time when many farmers have been displaced by bandits, and those who remain are barely able to afford the cost of planting.
“How can production be increasing when the rural economy is under siege by bandits, and the costs of planting are now beyond the reach of the average farmer?” ADC asked.
This, according to the party, is propaganda, and it added that it was designed to create the illusion of economic progress while citizens continue to suffer.
“Any current drop in price is temporary, unsustainable, and driven by panic, not strategy, and deliberate planning.
“We also take note of the government’s claim that it has not released imported food into the market.
“If we are to even momentarily entertain this falsehood, it begs an even more damning question: why is the government hoarding food while the people go hungry? What sort of administration stores food in warehouses during a hunger crisis?” the party asked.
