Elder statesman, Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), on Friday told President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that state governors have hijacked allocations to local government areas and that he should find a way of reversing the trend.
He spoke when he declared open the eighth edition of the Afe Babalola Agricultural Expo in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
ABAEX is an annual gathering of farmers, where they are empowered by the Founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti.
Babalola argued that if local government areas in the country receive their allocations directly from the Federation Account, they would be able to revive agriculture and boost the economy.
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He lamented that the local councils have remained ineffective over the years in bringing development to the people due to the activities of governors have hijacked their allocations.
He said: “I am suggesting that local government areas should be empowered.
“Each local government should set up farming equipment for farmers to hire.
“They should also earmark large hectares of land for the farmers to farm.
“When I was a councillor, in those days, local government funds used to come directly to them.
“We all know what has been happening to their money.
“I think the current President (Bola Tinubu) should do all he can to ensure that local government allocation gets to them directly and not through the governors because they (governors) steal a lot.
“No parent will send their children to school, some to masters and PhD level, only to come back and be asked to use cutlass to farm.
“The best the government can do now to revive agriculture is to buy modern implements to encourage people to farm.
“If local government funds get to them, they will be able to buy tractors for the people to rent it.”
The Chairman of the Local Organising Committee of ABAEX, Prof. Abiodun Ojo, said the vision is essentially to encourage excellence and sustainable performance among the farmers in Ekiti State.
Ojo said it also aims to increase value addition across all agricultural products.
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