Kano anti-graft commission urges FG to checkmate fraud in rice production

The Chairman, Kano State Public Complaints and Anti- Corruption Commission, Barr. Muhuyi Rimin-Gado has urged the Federal Government to checkmate fraud in rice production policy in the country.

Muhuyi Rimin-Gado made the call on Friday in Kano after meeting with the leadership of Rice Processors Association of Nigeria (RIPAN), Kano State chapter.

The chairman urged the Federal Government to step up measures that would strengthen rice production policy in Kano State and in the country.

He said that N10 billion Anchor Borrowers Programme that was meant for real farmers at the grassroots in the state was diverted and only a few farmers benefited.‎

Rimingado said that the good policy of the Federal Government was hijacked by corrupt people who disbursed funds to fake farmers.

He also lamented that the loan recovery was poor in the state because the money was given to the wrong set of people who did not own farms.‎

“I want to use this medium to call on farmers, especially those who benefited from the scheme to understand that the Anchor-Borrower Scheme is not a free package but a loan scheme.

“Therefore, I want to appeal to our farmers not to see the Anchor-Borrower as a gift, although it appeared to be they must be ready to pay back in paddy,” he warned.

The chairman said that defaulting in repaying the loan is depriving others of getting access to the loan scheme.

Rimingado, who attributed the scarcity of paddy rice to fraud, said that most of ‎the crisis in the country today was due to corruption. ‎

He said that the anti-corruption body was doing everything possible to ensure that stolen resources were recovered and returned. ‎‎

The anti-corruption boss said that the commission would take the case to the Federal Government because of the jurisdiction of the agency was limited to Kano State.‎

On the increase in the price of local rice, the chairman said that the meeting focused on how to control or bring down the price of paddy rice.

Earlier, the Chairman of Rice Processors Association of Nigeria (RIPAN), Alhaji Imran Amin said that the increase was as a result of a surge in the price of paddy from N160, 000 per tonne to N195, 000 per tonne.‎

Imran urged the government to provide land to the millers to be directly involved in the production of rice.

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“We are appealing to the government to give us land and loan so that we can produce good quantity and quality of paddy and chances of loan recovery is 100 per cent,” he said.‎‎

Imran also called for proper utilisation of funds being channelled to paddy production and blocking of loopholes that were hampering the success of the programme.‎

According to him, the agreement between the state government and the processors a few months back to sell local rice at N16,000 per bag will be reviewed because of the 30 per cent increase in paddy price. ‎(NAN)