Shagari killed Nigeria’s rice production, says Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, on Thursday, accused Second Republic President, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, of killing rice production in the country.
As military Head of State, Obasanjo handed over power to Shagari on October 1, 1979.
Shagari was later overthrown on December 31, 1983 by General Muhammadu Buhari.
Obasanjo, who spoke in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital as the Chief Launcher at the unveiling of Okun Rice,
blamed Shagari for Nigeria’s inability to be self-sufficient in rice production.
Okun Rice is produced by Hyst Global Business Limited owned by Mr. Biodun Onalaja.
The event was held at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library.
He said: “The Shagari regime scuttled the strides the nation was making in rice production. One of our problems in this country is inconsistency in policy. In 1979, we were getting to a place where we would be self-sufficient in rice production, but then a new administration came and set up a Presidential Committee on rice importation instead of a Presidential Committee on exportation of rice. In no time, when the imported rice started arriving, those farmers who were cultivating rice gave up.”
To him, this policy inconsistency and shift from the agricultural revolution of his military regime caused obstacles for local farmers.
“You will remember that the Shagari administration set up a committee on importation of rice, which eventually served as a disincentive to rice farmers in the country”.
He opined that Hyst Global Business Limited had rekindled the nation’s hope at achieving self-sufficiency in rice production and ensuring food security.
“Today, I commend  Hyst Global Business Limited and the Chairman, Mr. Biodun Onalaja, for his doggedness, persistence and stubbornness. It is not easy to succeed here as a farmer. But I want to say Onalaja is a success story because despite the odds, he never gave up”.
Obasanjo appealed to commercial banks to offer soft loans to farmers at a single digit interest rate towards boosting agriculture.
He contended that no farmer would break even on two digits interest rate.
In his remarks, Onalaja said his company located at Ejiba, Kogi State, engages in rice farming on 1,000 hectares of land, in the precinct of the Lower River Niger Basin.