A chieftain of All Progressive Congress ( APC) and a former Kano state commissioner for rural and community development, Alhaji Ilyasu Musa Kwanjwaso, has described the federal government’s order for immediate release of 102,000 metric tonnes of rice, maize, millet and garri from national reserves and stores of the Nigerian market, as a needed move to crash the high cost of essential commodities and ameliorate economic situation the teeming masses presently facing.
Kwankwaso said this on Saturday in an interview with press in Kano, urging Nigerians to be patient with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He added that the President is aware of the economic hardship Nigerians were passing through.
According to him, “Nigerians should thank God because the present leadership headed by President Tinubu, has a listening ear, hence the need for him to have taken a prompt action by giving order for immediate release of the 102,000 grains to cushion the effect of skyrocketing price of foodstuffs.”
He disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security will make available 42,000 metric tonnes of maize, millet, garri and other commodities, while the rice millers through their Association will also release 62,000 metric tonnes of rice from their reserves.
”The first one is that the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has been directed to immediately release about 42,000 metric tons of maize, millet, garri and other commodities in their strategic reserve so that these items will be made available to Nigerians.”
He added that Nigerians should also know that the soaring of foodstuff prices was not the handiwork of President Tinubu, noting that the prices were being determined by unstable foreign exchange which the federal government has been trying to address.
Kwankwaso however condemned the opposition parties, especially the People Democratic Party (PDP) over its recent attack on President Tinubu’s move to curtailing the high prices of foodstuffs.
Reacting to the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Debo Ologunagba, over an alleged leak approval of a memo, on the purported approval of N500 million as first installment of a N1 billion approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the inauguration of a 37-man Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage as reportedly contained in a leaked memo by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, he stated that there was no enough evidence to prove that.
Kwankwaso, however, advised the opposition parties to always criticise constructively, so as to proffer a positive solution and give necessary advice to the federal government.