Alaafin backs Buhari’s anti-corruption war

The Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi 111, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for mustering the political will to resolutely combat corruption in the country.
Oba Adeyemi gave the commendation on Wednesday when the Minister of Water Resources, Engineer Suleiman Oseni Adamu, paid him a courtesy visit in his palace in Oyo town.
The monarch said in all efforts to combat the cankerworm and
hydra-headed monster called corruption, the commitment of elected
representatives and other public officials is pivotal, adding that  if
those who govern lack the political will to refrain from corruption
and institute change, real reform is difficult to undertake and
virtually impossible to sustain.
‘’If there is anyone in the country today who can determinedly and
sincerely fight corruption, and whose redoubtable character, moral
rectitude and uprightness still withstand the tests of time, such a
person is Muhamadu Buhari.  He neither bothers about earthly desires,
egoistic tendency, live above his income, nor material acquisitions
during his tenure as military Head of State and presently as the
nation’s President, but thoroughly disciplined, resolute, patriotic,
God-fearing and not covetous’’.
While positing that public office holders automatically become
Billionaires once in office and even after leaving office, he stressed
that this happens at the detriment of infrastructural development,
unemployment and absolute poverty.
‘’Political leaders, and other stakeholders must support and team up
with the present administration, in order to attack perceived causes
or effects of corruption at a systemic level. This demonstration of
credible capacity reflects political will to curb corruption, as well
as to pursue other goals like good governance and national unity’’.
According to him, ‘’political will is not equivalent to political
manifesto rhetoric or pressure group statements. Rather, it is the
manifestation of a robust system of checks and balances and strong
political institutions for combating corruption and promoting good
governance as well as restoring trust and confidence in democratic
politics’’.
Oba Adeyemi who expressed dismay over what he referred to as
‘internationally conspiracy’ against the country, and accused the
United States of America of intentionally crashing oil prices in order
to make Nigeria economically subservient, lauded the gallantry of the
Nigerian Armed Forces in getting rid of BOKO HARAM terrorism.
Alaafin eulogized the Federal Government on the award of contract for
the reconstruction of Erelu dam.
Oba Adeyemi who hinted that a sum of N1.4 billion was earmarked for
the project, out of which N1 billion had so far been released, called
for the release of the remaining funds, in order enhance speedy
completion of the water project.
The paramount ruler also spoke on benefits of irrigation for
agricultural development.
Said he, ‘’food is essential for human beings as well for animals for
their sustenance. Before irrigation, man satisfied his hunger by
eating fruits from the forest and drinking water from natural streams.
Slowly his demands grew and he felt the need of different types of
food. He started cultivating and grew crops. Agriculture was his sole
occupation. He depended mainly on rainwater to water the crops, but
nature did not favor him always. Occasionally droughts were severe and
there was a consequent lack of harvest. There was a need for
irrigation and he started to use water from ponds, streams and rivers
for agriculture’’.
Alaafin pointed out that there are many essential irrigation benefits
in agriculture, hence crops should not depend on the rain only as
irrigation allows introduction of high yield crops.
While acknowledging the vital roles being played by the Ogun/ Osun
River Basin Development Authority towards self-sufficiency in food
production, Oba Adeyemi assured the Minister of farmers’ cooperation
on irrigation system for farming.
Earlier, the Minister said the dry season is usually a challenging
period for farmers and with an average precipitation that is below 60
millimetres and lack of watering holes, farmers face many challenges
in planting.
But with the efforts of the Federal Government to address this
problem, he stated that farmers may no longer be left dry when the
weather gets harsh.
According to Engineer Oseni, ‘’farmers face unpredictable weather
brought on by climate change. Sometimes the rainy season comes late,
at other times, it ends early. Sometimes the rains come late and hard,
causing floods. At other times, rains don’t come at all, causing
drought. With these weather changes, it is difficult for farmers to
plan which crops to grow, when to prepare land, when to plant, and how
to plan other farming tasks’’.
‘’Worst hit are those from the North who have to respond to serious
weather changes, making it difficult for them to farm during  dry
season, which runs from October to May. The weather during this period
is much hotter and drier. For this reason, farmers adopt various
agricultural practices to confront these differences in weather
patterns’’.
The Minister who told the monarch that one of the challenges facing
the River Basin Development Authority  was lack of farmers’
co-operation on irrigation farming, and solicited his support for
proper enlightenment, urged farmers to embrace irrigation farming, as
it can deliver greater crop yield than rain-fed farming.
  Oseni noted that irrigation farming was more productive because it
was usually regulated and more focused than rain-fed farming.
‘’That is why people in the South are being encouraged to use the dams
in their areas for irrigation. We are encouraging people in the South
now to go into irrigation farming even though we don’t have a long
period of dry season for them to do continuous irrigation. So, we
encourage them to go into some irrigation because the production from
irrigation normally is better than rain-fed agriculture,” he said.