Farmers raises alarm over FG fertilizers distribution in Gombe

From David Hassan, Gombe

Farmers in Gombe state has raised an alarm, alleging that the federal government fertilizer allocation to Gombe state was not distributed to farmers either the fertilizer is no where to be found.
In a separate interview with Journalists in Gombe, some farmers insisted that the allocation of the fertilizer by the federal government to the state did not see the light of the day as they still asked where about of the federal government fertilizer allocated to the state.
However, some of the farmers who show their concerned related to the allocation of the federal government fertilizer said they were shortchange for not giving them the fertilizer to used on their farms.
It could be recalled that Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya on June 20, announced the federal government 2,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer donated to farmers in the state.
Yahaya who gave the announcement while inaugurating the sales and distribution of subsidised fertiliser to farmers for the 2024 wet season in the state, commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for the gesture.
However, farmers in the state have lamented their inability to assess the fertilisers to support farming activities during the wet season, alleging that the commodity was not distributed.
Mr Ayuba Ali, a farmer from Billiri community in Billiri Local Government Area of the state said farmers in his community and neighbouring villages did not benefit from the free fertilisers.
Ali said that the fertilisers would have empowered peasant farmers to boost food production, increase farmers’ income as well as the livelihoods of rural dwellers if they were distributed.
Malam Umar Hamisu, a sorghum and wheat farmer in Nafada, told Peoples daily that the 2024 cropping season was the worst for him as he was unable to buy inputs to carry out farming activities.
Hamisu attributed the reason to the high cost of fertilisers and other agrochemicals and the lack of support from the government.
“We heard that President Tinubu supported farmers in the state with fertilisers, but we didn’t see anything in our villages”, he said.
Similarly, Mrs. Esther Bitrus, a rice and maize farmer from Dadin Kowa community, said that only subsidised fertilisers from the state government was “minimally” sold at N25, 000 and was politically distributed too.
“I bought my fertilisers because I didn’t enjoy that of the Federal and the state governments’ fertilisers, so I just made do with the one I could afford.
“But it is not fair that the Federal Government will bring fertilisers for farmers and we don’t enjoy the gesture, especially now that farming has become too expensive for peasants like us”, she said.
In the same vein, Aliyu Kashere, a multi-grain farmer, said that it was particularly painful that farmers who produce food for Gombe and Nigeria were not supported in the state like their colleagues in other places.
Kashere urged the state government to ensure the distribution of the fertilisers to support farmers during the dry season farming.
A 65-year-old retired teacher from Lapai in Shongom LGA of the state, Mrs. Rita Paul, who is now into farming also said that she was yet to benefit from Tinubu’s fertilisers.
Paul said with the rising cost of inputs and impact of climate change, farmers ought to be supported to overcome the high cost of farming to boost food security.
She commended the state government for subsidising fertilisers by 50 per cent, adding that she only got one bag for N25, 000 which was inadequate.
”For the other fertilisers from Mr President, we didn’t get that and no farmer here got it because we all visited and interacted with the people ourselves”, she said.