The Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria Prof. Garba Sharubutu has called on government to look at the possibility of reviving the National Forest Guard as a way of fishing out bandits and kidnappers hiding in some forest in the country.
Prof. Sharubutu made the call while presenting the agency’s scorecard to the Agricultural Correspondent of Nigeria (ACAN) in Abuja Nigeria’s Capital.
According to him, the issue of insecurity particularly banditry and kidnapping has negatively affected agricultural activities in the country.
It has hindered farmers from going to their farms; extension workers are also scared of going to the farms to attend to the needs of farmers not to mention its effect on research work in the country as it also hinders researcher’s access to the fields.
According to Sharubutu, the Forest has been taken over by Bandits, Kidnappers and terrorist because the forest is unmanned.
“The underlining factor for insecurity is the forest, that is the underlining factor. Some of you might be young but for those here that know what this country then knows what the Forest Guard is.
“In Kenya there is a Forest Guard. In India there is Forest Guard. When people steal children either from Kagara or Jangebe they run to the forest. Boko Haram was able to maneuver Sambisa because it is a forest, this factor is striking us on the face and we have neglected the forest”.
Prof. Sharubutu stated that some of the country’s security personnel be deployed as Forest guard to man the forest.
“Honestly to me, I wouldn’t mind a situation where we divide our security forces into two, give one half a special training on how to man the forest. There are a lot of resources in the forest.
“When Federal Road Safety Corps was set up, why was it not set up? It was because people where dying on the roads. So today if we strengthen the Forest because people are dying in the forest, what is wrong with that?” he queried.
According to the ARCN boss insecurity is affecting research work as the council cannot access some of its adopted villages and schools due to insecurity.
Emmanuel Ukoh
