Anchor Borrowers Loan: Stakeholder Reacts To Tinubu's Order To Defray Debts, Says C'River Real Farmers Didn't Benefit
By Victor UDU
The marching order from the President, His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to security agencies and the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN to recover the sum of 577 billion from defaulters of the anchor borrowers loan scheme across the country has generated multiple reactions from Stakeholders in the agricultural sector in Cross River State.
The latest reaction has come from the state Chairman Agro Value Chain steering committee , Chairman Catfish farmers Association and National Vice President ,South South zone, Catfish farmers association of Nigeria and director Lexandy fish and agro farms, Chief Ndem Effiong.
Chief Effiong in his reaction lauded President Tinubu for the strong order but however lamented that the real farmers in Cross River state did not benefit from the loan scheme.
Chief Effiong stated that his position on the matter remains inviolable and without any fears of contradiction that no real farmer in the state benefited from the anchor borrowers loan scheme of the Federal Government.
He said if there's any one with a contrary view, such persons should feel free to prove him wrong with correct evidence.
According to Chief Effiong the list that was presented to Government as benefiting farmers from the state is fake as it doesn't represent a true picture stressing that" anyone can generate a list but what really matters is whether the information reflects the true situation on ground.
The renown fish farmer said what constituted the so called Cross River list is composed of what he termed the" Audio, Portfolio and Political farmers" but not the true farmers.
Chief Effiong argued that if there was any intervention from the government they ought to have been a follow up to ensure compliance and sustainability but in this case there's nothing to liverage or live on. The impact is zero, he added.
He observed that when interventions get into wrong hands like the loan scheme in question did, inputs given are being sold to the people whose right it is to access them and funds are misdirected, misapplied to other ventures living the real sector to die.
Chief Effiong called on the government and donor agencies to nip this anomaly in the agricultural sector and to always reach the farmers through their Chain Heads to enable supervision and follow up to ensure proper utilization of funds and prompt payment of loans.
Recall President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had recently given the CBN and Security Agencies September 18 deadline to recover all anchor borrowers loans from defaulters.
Figures of the transaction shows Cross River, is the highest borrower in the south-south and south East with 11.3 billion followed by Ondo with 7.5billion and Ogun,5.89,Ekiti ,5.68, Delta,5.23, Akwa Ibom 4.97,Enugu,3.96 Abia,2.67 and Edo, 1.74b.
The scheme which was floated by the FG to make funds available for increased agricultural programmes ran into problems when beneficiaries failed to pay back their loans.
Reports have it that out of the 1.1 trillion that was disbursed to farmers by the apex bank, only 546 billion has been recovered so far leaving about 577 billions in the hands of beneficiaries.
Findings also reveal that most of what was disbursed and now being owed is in the hands of politicians, banks and farmers associations.
In a meeting with security chiefs reports say President Tinubu was visibly up set to know that so much that would have been used to support other farmers was still in the hands of beneficiaries hence the order to recover all that is being owed on or before September 18.
Meanwhile, all efforts to talk to the Commissioner for livestock, aquaculture and fisheries development, Emmanuel Anom, and Commissioner for crops and irrigation, Mr Johnson Ebekpo failed.
