Benue State governor, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia has announced the award of contract for the construction of the Achoho-Awajir-Oju Road to ease the transportation of farm produce to nearby markets.
Governor Alia also urged the people of Oju/Obi Federal Constituency to form farming cooperatives to benefit from government incentives and support in the agriculture sector.
The governor made the announcements while addressing a crowd in Oju Local Government area of the state in continuation of his Thank You Tour of the state. The people came out in their numbers to welcome the governor to Igede land and he assured them of his administration’s resolve to bring development to the three senatorial zones in the state.
“My good people of Oju/Obi, I am calling on all of you to form farm cooperatives of at least 15 persons so that you can identify a particular crop you want to farm, get hectares of land, forward your request to the government and we will provide farming inputs like tractors, fertilisers herbicides among others that would enable you to harvest bountifully and sell back to us at your reasonable prices.
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“The reason behind the initiative is to stop the inconsistency in prices of farm produce and the exploitation of farmers by middlemen to help farmers have value for their produce,” he said.
While promising to provide people-oriented and purposeful leadership to all parts of the state, the governor appealed to the people to remain supportive of his administration which he said has already executed numerous projects within one year. Some of the projects, according to him, include the procurement of 100 buses for the only state transport company, Benue Links, to cushion the high cost of transportation faced by Benue masses, construction of roads across the state, prompt payment of workers’ salaries, pensions and gratuities, among others.
Also speaking, Senator Barnabas Gemade called on the people of Oju/Obi Federal Constituency to remain supportive of the Alia administration’s efforts to attract more development to their area.
He said, “Governor Alia remains a true leader as a priest to change the Benue narrative by breaking the shackles of underdevelopment and restoring development in the state”.
Earlier, the Member representing Oju/Obi Federal Constituency, David Ogewu, had assured the governor of his support and that of his constituents.
