Business

Expectations From New IGP, Rivers CP

Last week, President Muhammadu Buhari
appointed an Acting Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Idris following the retirement of the former IGP, Solomon Arase. The same week, a new Commissioner of Police, Foluso A. Adebanjo was deployed to Rivers State.
Our correspondent, Calista Ezeaku went out to get people’s reactions to this development, especially their expectations from the two police officers. And their reactions are quite exciting. Our photographer, Ibioye Diama captured their images

Published

10 years ago

June 27, 2016

The Tide

Mr. Nation – Fashion Designer
Since the inception of the current administration, the condition of the State has been very bad, security wise. Just recently, about twenty persons were killed in Emohua by a so-called cultist. From Emohua, he went to Rumuosi and also killed some people. A similar situation prevails in many parts of the State. So, the new Commissioner of Police should work hard because the level of insecurity in the State is very alarming. Nobody is safe. Nobody is protected. He should beef up security in our communities, especially the volatile communities. There should be police presence everywhere. And all of us, members of the public, should also help the police.
Evang Mike – Chairman Abua/Odual Pray Foundation
The rising rate of insecurity in the State is worrisome to everybody. Nobody is comfortable with what is happening and looking at the situation carefully, you will understand that the whole problem emanated from cultism, from politicians and all the rest. And unfortunately, even the police that we should look up to has already been politicised.. If you go close to them, you will find out that some of them are working for one political party or the other. So, a situation where the political party has power over the security agencies, it means we don’t have security any longer because they are not on their own. We are not feeling safe. There are a lot of things happening right now that many people are yet to know. Yesterday, I left Abua/Odual only to be told later that there was shooting in a place called Ogolocon. The JTF went there and came back with one of them being shot. That is the kind of things happening in the local areas. For those in Port Harcourt, they are a little bit safer. But those in rural communities, especially the riverine communities, they are suffering greatly.
So, I want to formally welcome the new Commissioner of Police to the State. This morning, I heard from a radio station, a journalist saying that the frequent changing of police commissioner in the State will not help matters. I agree with him because a situation where someone is posted to the State and before he could study the situation in his domain to know how to tackle it, he is removed, it doesn’t help. I don’t think that is a good approach to manage the situation.
Having said that, I think the new Police Commissioner should be concerned about what is happening in the entire State. He should engage the communities, the traditional rulers, the youths, the civil society organisations, NGOs, opinion leaders towards resolving the crisis in the State. The Police is in a better position to do that. So, I expect the new police boss to carry out a kind of consultation and assessment of how many NGOs are registered, who are doing what to see what they can also contribute to help in solving the insecurity problem in the State.
The police boss should also sensitise his men because there have been allegations that some of these criminals work with them. So, he should be sensitive to that fact and only use the committed ones to do the work instead of allowing the police to be so politicised. He should ensure that his men carry out their job professionally and should not be controlled by anybody.
I also want to say that all hands must be on deck to make the new commissioner to succeed. The Governor, the Commissioners and every other person should support him. We can support by giving the police necessary information required for them to carry out their duties effectively.
For the AIG, I expect him to be meeting frequently with his Commissioners and all those put in strategic positions at least to be hearing frequently what is happening in the states. He should not just sit in his office and be expecting reports. He should take steps that will actually convince the people that he is working. He should respond promptly whenever security challenges arise in any part of the country. The police should ensure that everybody is treated equally.

Celine Ayo Tamuno – Civil Servant
I think I like the idea of changing the Commissioner of Police because so many wrong things are going on in the State. People can no longer move freely. And I pray and believe God will give the new police boss the wisdom to handle the security challenges in this State. People in the rural areas are suffering. So many people have fled their homes to Port Harcourt. He should ensure that peace is returned to our communities so that people can go back and live in their homes peacefully.
I strongly believe the police know what to do to stop cultism and cult-related attacks in the State. The CP can invite them for a meeting to know actually what their problem is. Definitely, there must be reasons why they do what they are doing. The Commissioner of Police should invite them for a round table discussion, find out what actually are their grievances and see how to tackle them amicably. This morning, I heard the governor saying he will give amnesty to any repentant kidnaper. If that will solve the problem, they should give it to them.

Anonymous – Security Expert/Civil Servant
Rivers State has been a restive area because of cultism, militancy and others. The first thing the CP has to do is to develop an intelligence structure. He should be able to set up a strategy to enable the police fish out these criminals. They should be able to develop a good synergy with other security agencies. This will help in information dissemination. If you develop such a structure, you will make the criminals restless because anywhere they go, there will be presence of security agencies there, so very good network of information should be developed.
Secondly, there should be adequate discipline in the police. Any erring policeman or any criminal working with the police should be dealt with. The CP should be able to develop a network of policing around volatile areas.
A lot of people believe that the insecurity situation in the State had been fuelled by politics. So, there is need for the new CP to invite all the major political stakeholders in the State. Those of them who either arm the boys, send them to cause havoc or protect them from being harmed, should be punished in accordance with the law. By the time one or two of them are nabbed into the police net, it will reduce the crime. The Police Commissioner should not be respecter of anybody. He should ensure that the rate of harassment and intimidation of members of the public by policemen in the state is reduced.
For the new IG, he should be on his toes because the immediate past IGP has kept a standard. He should maintain that standard and learn from whatever lapses and develop the Nigerian police force.

Mr. Stephen Osigwe – Taxi Driver
First of all, we welcome the new Commissioner of Police and we will be happy to see him do a good job for us. He should try and curtail the spate of cultism in the State because it is too much. Every time killing, killing. He should help us curtail this crime. He should mobilise his boys to volatile areas like Diobu. Once it is 6 p.m, you will see the bad boys patrolling everywhere. He should mobilise his boys to deal with them. Sometimes they can come in disguise and arrest these boys.
The new CP should help us talk to his boys. They are always at every junction, checking, checking, checking. So we are tired of the several checks. We are suffering from the numerous taskforces and police checking. Things are very hard in the country now and the police make it harder for us by their harassment, intimidation and extortion. There are minor offences they are expected to caution the driver and ask him to go, they should do so instead of asking him to pay.
On the federal level, I wish the new IG good luck. I welcome him. I believe he has new plans, new agenda that will strengthen the police force and ensure adequate security in the entire country. So, I wish him good luck. The policemen have been trying to curtail the menace of Boko Haram and the new IG should maintain the tempo. He should also look into the problem of Fulani herdsmen. He should put measures in place to ensure that these cattle rearers don’t become Boko Haram members in disguise
Miss Juliet Polokachike – Businesswoman
I will advise the new CP to please ensure thorough enforcement of the laws of the State. He should try and make the State to be peaceful. He should also try and get to the root of the insecurity problem we have in the State. Most of the time, we hear it is cult war and all that, but what led to the high rate of cultism among our youths? He can dialogue with them; educate them on the dangers involved in cultism. He should call them, know what their problem is; seek for peace before you start arresting them. Killing them will not solve the problem.
The CP and the state government should make our youth useful. From time to time, there should be seminars for them. There should be constant sensitisation, education of our youth on the need to do the right thing, and be useful to themselves and the society because our youths are going extra miles these days.

Business

AFAN Unveils Plans To Boost Food Production In 2026

Published

2 days ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

The leadership of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) has set the tone for the new year with a renewed focus on food security, unity and long-term growth of the agricultural sector.

The association announced that its General Assembly of Farmers Congress will take place from January 15 to 17, 2026 at the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industries, along Lugbe Airport Road, in the Federal Capital Territory.

The gathering is expected to bring together farmers, policymakers, investors and development partners to shape a fresh direction for Nigerian agriculture.

In a New Year address to members and stakeholders, AFAN president, Dr Farouk Rabiu Mudi, said the congress would provide a strategic forum for reviewing past challenges and outlining practical solutions for the future.

He explained that the event would serve as a rallying point for innovation, collaboration and economic renewal within the sector.

Mudi commended farmers across the country for their determination and hard work, despite years of insecurity, climate-related pressures and economic uncertainty.

According to him, their resilience has kept food production alive and positioned agriculture as a stabilising force in the national economy.

He noted that AFAN intends to build on this strength by resetting agribusiness operations to improve productivity and sustainability.

The AFAN leader appealed to government institutions, private investors and development organisations to deepen their engagement with the association.

He stressed the need for collective action to confront persistent issues such as insecurity in farming communities, climate impacts and market instability.

He also urged members to put aside internal disputes and personal interests, encouraging cooperation and shared responsibility in pursuit of national development.

Mudi outlined key priorities that include increasing food output, expanding support for farmers at the grassroots and strengthening local manufacturing through partnerships with both domestic and international investors adding that reducing dependence on imports remains critical to protecting the economy and creating jobs.

He stated that the upcoming congress will feature the launch of AFAN’s twenty-five-year agricultural mechanisation roadmap, alongside the announcement of new partnerships designed to accelerate growth across the value chain.

Participants, he said wi also have opportunities for networking and knowledge exchange aimed at transforming agriculture into a more competitive and technology-driven sector.

As part of its modernisation drive, AFAN is further encouraging members nationwide to enrol for the newly introduced Digital ID Card.

Mudi said the initiative will improve transparency, ensure proper farmer identification and make it easier to access support programmes and services.

Reaffirming the association’s long-term goal, he said the vision of national food sufficiency by 2030 remains achievable if unity and collaboration are sustained.

He expressed optimism that with collective effort, Nigeria’s agricultural sector can overcome its challenges and deliver a more secure and prosperous future.

Lady Usendi

Business

Industrialism, Agriculture To End Food Imports, ex-AfDB Adviser Tells FG

Published

2 days ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

Former Senior Special Adviser on Industrialisation to the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Professor Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, has urged the Nigerian government to urgently industrialise the agricultural sector as a pathway to food security, economic diversification, and sustainable job creation.

Professor Oyelaran-Oyeyinka made the call while speaking at the Oyo State Economic Summit held at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, during a lecture titled “Industrialising Agriculture for Economic Development and Food Security: Enhancing National Economies and Sub-National Entities.”

He cautioned that despite Nigeria’s vast arable land and its position as a leading global producer of crops such as cassava and yams, the country remains food-deficient and heavily dependent on costly food imports.

He highlighted that Nigeria spends over one trillion naira annually importing wheat, rice, sugar, and fish, a persistent trend that drains foreign exchange, undermines local farmers, weakens industrial competitiveness, and fuels unemployment.

The development economist argued that the solution lay in transforming agriculture from a subsistence activity into a modern, industrial enterprise capable of producing surplus, supporting manufacturing, and driving broad-based economic growth.

He explained that industrialising agriculture does not mean replacing rural communities with factories, but rather empowering farmers with technology, skills, infrastructure, and market access to raise productivity and incomes.

According to Professor Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, Nigeria’s low agricultural productivity reflected deeper structural challenges, including weak education systems, limited skills, and inadequate investment in technology and infrastructure.

He noted that countries that successfully transitioned from low-income to middle-income status did so by modernising agriculture alongside industrial development, creating strong linkages between farms, processing industries, and markets.

Oyelaran-Oyeyinka highlighted stark yield disparities between Africa and Asia, noting that cereal yields across African countries remain less than a third of those achieved in East Asia.

This gap, he said, explains why African economies struggle to compete globally and why industrialisation efforts have stalled.

Professor Oyelaran-Oyeyinka outlined key pillars of agricultural industrialisation, including mechanisation, value addition, integrated supply chains, access to finance, improved seed systems, and targeted investment in human and technological capabilities.

He stressed that farms must be treated as “factories without roofs,” capable of feeding into agro-processing, manufacturing, and export industries.

The visiting professor at The Open University in Milton Keynes said the economic benefits of such a transformation would be far-reaching, including reduced dependence on oil, large-scale job creation, significant foreign exchange savings, and stronger national food security.

Drawing lessons from Vietnam, he described how deliberate agricultural modernisation helped transform the Southeast Asian country from a food importer into one of the world’s leading exporters of rice, coffee, cashew, and seafood.

Vietnam’s agribusiness exports, he said, now generate tens of billions of dollars annually and underpin the country’s wider industrial success.

He attributed Vietnam’s success to consistent policies, heavy investment in agro-processing, strong farmer–industry linkages, and the use of special economic zones to drive value addition and export competitiveness.

Oyelaran-Oyeyinka noted that similar models are emerging in Nigeria, including in Oyo State, but warned that they require reliable infrastructure, policy stability, and empowered governance to succeed.

The professor called on state governments to prioritise power, roads, and logistics, strengthen agricultural extension services, and create efficient special agro-industrial processing zones that attract major domestic and international investors.

He also urged the private sector to view agriculture as a profitable business frontier rather than a social obligation, noting that Nigeria’s future prosperity depended less on oil and more on harnessing the productive potential of its land and people.

“We are a nation that can feed itself and others, yet we remain food-insecure and overly dependent on imports. This paradox is holding back our economy.”

“Industrialising agriculture does not erase our rural roots; it transforms them into engines of productivity, wealth creation and national development.”

“Subsistence agriculture is both a cause and a consequence of technological backwardness, and no country has reached middle-income status without first modernising its agriculture.”

“A farm must be treated as a factory without a roof, connected to processing, logistics, finance and markets. Vietnam shows that agricultural transformation is not accidental; it is the result of deliberate policies that link farmers to industry and global markets.”

“The seeds of Nigeria’s prosperity are not buried in oil wells; they are sown in the fertile soils of our ecological zones,” he said.

Lady Usendi

Business

Cashew Industry Can Generate $10bn Annually- Association

Published

2 days ago

January 9, 2026

The Tide

The President of the National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN), Dr Ojo Ajanaku, has said Nigeria could earn $10 billion annually from cashew production, with $3 billion coming from cashew sales alone.

Ajanaku made this known during a press conference organised ahead of the 4th National Cashew Day, scheduled to hold from Jan. 22 to Jan. 24 in Abuja, with the the theme: “Unlocking the Full Potential of Nigeria’s Cashew Industry”.

He said that poor export documentation and weak repatriation of proceeds were causing major losses to the Nigerian economy.

“A substantial volume of cashew exported from Nigeria leaves the country without proper export proceeds forms, as exporters allegedly avoid bringing earnings back into the country,” he said.

He said during the last export season alone, Nigeria reportedly exported over 400,000 tonnes of cashew valued at about $700 million.

Ajanaku noted that deliberate investments in production and processing could unlock far greater potentials.

“If Nigeria produces just two million tonnes of cashew annually, which is achievable in less than five years, and sells at an average of $1,500 per tonne, the country would earn about $3 billion yearly,” he said.

He added that beyond raw cashew exports, enormous value lies in processing and by-products such as Cashew Nut Shell Fluid (CNSF) and cashew cake, which are largely wasted locally.

“In Vietnam, cashew cake alone sells for about 95 cents per kilogram, while in Nigeria processors pay to dispose of it as waste,” he noted.

Ajanaku explained that full local processing of cashew and its by-products could generate not less than $10 billion annually for Nigeria while creating thousands of jobs across the value chain.

He stressed that Nigeria has the production capacity, while countries like Vietnam possess advanced processing technology.

The NCAN President further disclosed that the association is strengthening partnerships with key government institutions, including the Ministry of Finance, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, NEXIM Bank, and other agencies to reposition the sector.

He added that a landmark Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between Nigeria and Vietnam to facilitate technology transfer and deepen cooperation in cashew processing.

He expressed optimism that with sustained government support and effective regulation, the cashew industry could become a major driver of economic growth, foreign exchange earnings, and industrial development in Nigeria.

“Producing states should be given priority. For example, Kogi State, which has the highest cashew production in the country, has no factory. A lot of potentials can come from Kogi State for the country,” he said.

Also speaking, NCAN National Secretary, Augustine Edieme, said strategic plans are being made to showcase Nigeria’s potentials during the 4th National Cashew Day, which he described as a key opportunity to attract bigger investments and investors into the industry.

“We are not just talking about the cashew seeds. We need to crack the fruit shell and discover the value in cashew shells. Industrialisation of the cashew industry is key to driving the Nigerian economy,” he said.

The representative of the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN), Sunday Ojonugwa, pledged that FACAN would optimally support the cashew association to ensure the sector reaches its full potential.

Lady Usendi