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GMOs Not Option For Food Shortage, Hunger, Experts Tell FG
The Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF), Nnimmo Bassey, and a Molecules Diagnostics Traditional Science expert, Casmir Ifeanyi, have told the Federal Government that Genetically Modified Orgnanisms (GMOs) were not the way out of food shortage and hunger in Nigeria.
Bassey and Casmir spoke during a training programme for media practitioners on Bio-safety and Genetic Engineering in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The HOMEF director said that the country was faced with the problem of food safety.
“Food safety is a challenge facing us as regards what to eat. There is need for people to have access to good food. We want food to be seen as life and culture, and not as commodity.
“The problem facing us as regards food is that there is no access road to move food from rural communities to the cities. They few that try would increase their prices.
“There is also the problem of storage facilities, processing facilities. No fair pricing are reasons foods from villages hardly get to the cities.
“People are not hungry because there is no food to eat, but over 30 per cent of food goes waste and most used for industrial purposes”, Bassey stated.
On his part, Ifeanyi, who is also the national publicity secretary, Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMSLN), said GMOs were not a silver bullet that would solve food crisis and hunger in the country.
“NESRA has in its act to have access to Generic environment. I don’t know the role they are playing in all the GMOs that have been approved.
“The way we have turned the Biosafety Agency as a one stop for approval for free trials yields less than desired. We should bring in more hands.
“GMO is not a silver bullet that will solve the problem of food shortage, hunger or climate change. What we need is the Ministry of Agriculture and Central Bank and Bank of Agriculture is to lend resources to small scale farmers to be able to improve their operations”, Ifeanyi noted.
He tasked farmers against the use of chemicals on their crops, adding that it does not only affect humans, but also aquatic lives.
Ifeanyi said: ‘Government should develop seed bank for farmers, so that we use our traditional seeds in farming. If there is a seed bank when there is shortage of seed and crops we re-launch them.
“We must start discouraging our farmers as regards indiscriminate use of chemicals in our farms. The chemicals we use in our farms end up running into the rivers and destroy the aquatic lives”, he noted.
Susan Serekara-Nwikhana
Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has called on Nigerians to reject silence in the face of extrajudicial killings and other abuses of human rights.
Soyinka stressed that accountability and civic courage remain essential to rebuilding public confidence in the nation’s institutions.
He made the call during the 28th Wole Soyinka Lecture held in Port Harcourt, last Friday as part of activities marking his 92nd birthday.
The lecture, themed “Reclaiming the Nigerian State through Accountability, Justice and Civic Courage,” drew participants from different sectors of society.
The renowned playwright and human rights advocate said the country’s greatest tragedy was not only the unlawful killings carried out by state and non-state actors, but also the silence that often follows such incidents, allowing perpetrators to evade justice.
According to him, indifference by citizens to abuses of power and violations of fundamental human rights has contributed to the persistence of extrajudicial killings and other forms of injustice across the country.
Soyinka said he dedicated this year’s lecture to victims of unlawful killings, noting that the event was intended to honour individuals who had lost their lives as a result of failures within the justice system and society’s inability to protect the sanctity of human life.
He stressed that the lecture was dedicated to what he described as the basic unit of every society – the human being, and urged Nigerians to place greater value on human dignity irrespective of ethnicity, religion or social status.
The Nobel Laureate recalled several incidents of violence, including the fatal shooting and killing of a young man in Ugheli in Delta State by a police officer, and the mob killing of Deborah Yakubu in Sokoto State sometime ago, lamenting that many of those responsible are yet to face justice.
He expressed concern that some perpetrators of violent crimes had openly admitted their actions without fear of prosecution, describing such situations as evidence of serious failures within the nation’s justice system.
Soyinka maintained that when justice is delayed or denied, public confidence in state institutions continues to erode, thereby encouraging further violations of human rights.
Responding to critics who accuse him of promoting religious or ethnic divisions whenever he spoke on such issues, Soyinka dismissed the allegations and pointed out that his advocacy has always centred on the protection of human life and the rule of law.
He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and continue demanding justice in cases of alleged extrajudicial killings, including the recent shooting of a young man by a police officer, stressing that every life deserves equal protection under the law.
The literary icon also recalled an earlier pledge by a past incoming president to make public the files relating to unresolved assassinations and extrajudicial killings, questioning the status of the promised investigations.
He challenged citizens to continue asking questions about unresolved cases, insisting that justice, accountability and respect for human dignity are indispensable to building a peaceful, democratic and inclusive Nigerian society.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has clarified that there was no fire at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, contrary to its earlier advisory.
Earlier yesterday, FAAN had announced that a fire incident had occurred at Terminal 2 of the nation’s busiest airport, and assured that its Aerodrome Rescue and Firefighting Service had been deployed to contain the situation.
There were also reports that activities were briefly disrupted at the airport yesterday after smoke was seen inside parts of the terminal.
Videos circulating online showed passengers kept standing outside the terminal while firefighters responded to the incident.
However, in an update issued less than two hours later by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, and posted on FAAN’s official X handle, the authority said preliminary findings showed that the smoke seen at the terminal was caused by the discharge of the facility’s FM-200 fire suppression system.
“Further to our earlier advisory regarding the incident at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) wishes to provide the following update,” the statement read.
“Preliminary findings indicate that there was no fire at the terminal. The smoke observed within the affected area resulted from the discharge of the terminal’s FM-200 fire suppression system. The reason for the activation of the fire suppression system is currently being investigated,” FAAN stated.
The authority said normal operations had resumed at the terminal while investigations were ongoing to determine the cause of the incident.
“Normal operations have since resumed at the terminal, while detailed investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the incident,” the statement added.
The authority thanked passengers, airlines, airport users and other stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation.
FAAN appreciated the understanding and cooperation of passengers, airlines, airport users and all stakeholders, and reiterated its commitment to the safety and security of all airport operations.