Food blockade: Ethnic tensions are getting louder, Buhari's ex-minister
- The blockade of food supplies to southern Nigeria continues to generate reactions
- A former minister in the Buhari-led administration says the government should wade into the matter quickly
- Solomon Dalung also disclosed steps the administration can take to prevent violent clashes
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Former minister of youth and sports, Solomon Dalung, has called on the federal government to urgently resolve the current blockade crisis between the Amalgamated Union of Foodstuffs and Cattle Dealers of Nigeria (AUFCDN) and southern states.
Dalung who served as a minister during the first tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari revealed this in a statement titled "Drums of Anarchy Sounding Louder" and shared it on his Facebook page on Tuesday, March 2.
Recall that cattle and foodstuff dealers under the aegis of the Amalgamated Union of Foodstuffs and Cattle Dealers of Nigeria on Thursday, February 25, stopped food supplies to the south.
Source: Facebook
The Plateau-born politician explained that the current faceoff is an extension of an overall weakness of the country, adding that if ignored it could determine the federation.
He also noted that proactive measures must be taken to avert ugly consequences as the drums of ethnic tensions are getting louder daily.
Dalung noted that punitive measures should be imposed on the states that encourage or fail to avert crisis as well as setting up a committee to ascertain the extent of damages suffered by victims, as part of solutions to the crisis.
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Southern states react to north's food blockade
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that some southern state governments and farmers have reacted to the decision of northern cattle and foodstuff dealers to stop their supplies to southern states.
Six southern states, namely Lagos, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Enugu and Ondo, dismissed the blockade, saying it is an opportunity for the south to boost its food and animal production capacity.
Akin Olotu, the senior special assistant to the Ondo state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, on agriculture and agric business, described the blockade as a good development.
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Oluwatobi Bolashodun is a Legit.ng journalist with six years of working experience in the media industry. She graduated from Babcock University in 2012 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communication. Oluwatobi is a Current Affairs Editor, mostly writing on political, educational, and business topics. She uses her team spirit to encourage others to work hard.
Source: Legit.ng
