Government Must Invest Heavily In Agriculture To Guarantee Food Security – Senator Yaro

Distinguished Senator Anthony Siyako Yaro is a man with a clear vision. He is on a noble mission to transform Gombe South Senatorial District through equitable development and quality service delivery for the benefit of all. He speaks with NASSNEWS on his plans to provide quality legislation and purposeful leadership for his constituents

NASSNEWS: Officially, can we meet you, Sir?

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: I am Distinguished Senator Anthony Siyako Yaro, representing the good people of Gombe South Senatorial District in the 10th National Assembly.

NASSNEWS: For those that are reading for the first time, can you tell us a brief introduction about yourself, how did you join politics?

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: OK, I’ve been a banker all my life. I retired about five years ago. Upon retirement, I started managing my establishment, my personal office. It is a data accounting firm. From there, God helped me and I started interacting with my people better than when I was in the banking sector. As a result of that, I saw the need to help our people. I have been involved in quite a number of philanthropic activities and I saw the window of politics as a means of helping my people better. I know that if I get into this office, I’ll be able to attract development to my constituency and help my people more than I had been doing at my private level.

NASSNEWS: Let’s talk about your bill seeking the establishment of a College of Agriculture. What’s the relevance of the institution to your constituency?

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: It is true that I am sponsoring a bill for the establishment of the Federal College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry. The number one burning issue today in this country is food security. Government at all levels needs to invest heavily in agriculture. The establishment of the proposed college will help in training young people in modern agricultural techniques and animal husbanditry which will definitely boost food supply. So I want a situation where food will be in abundance. I want food to be everywhere in the country so that we can conveniently feed our people. The proposed college will help us to achieve that. It will boost agricultural production, animal husbandry, protein and every other thing that is associated with agriculture. Apart from boosting food supply, I discovered that there is no federal presence in my senatorial district. There are no tertiary institutions. There’s only one federal Polytechnic. So, I believe that we should have more federal institutions, so that more people in my constituency would be educated. Food will be more available in abundance.

NASSNEWS: That means it will also provide job opportunities for young graduates….

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: Yes, it will create layers of job. Thousands will be employed right from the Rector, academic and non academic staff. Students of the school would acquire practical knowledge in agriculture and animal husbanditry and they will use the practical experience and knowledge they have acquired in school to become entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector upon graduation. Our expectations are that the skills that students of the proposed institution would acquire will enable them to be employers of labour instead of seeking jobs after they have graduated. When they graduate, they don’t need any white collar job

NASSNEWS: As a former banker, what do you think is the solution to the current economic crisis in Nigeria?

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: The security and issues of the economy should be tacked effectively. At the same there must be abundant food for the citizenry. There should be an enabling environment for everyone to exhibit his or her God-given talents and skills. We met with the economic team last week Friday and we also met with the heads of security and military agencies in the country last Tuesday as well. We asked specific questions on how to move the country forward. They explained what they are doing and we offered our suggestions also. We believe that things will improve based on the steps we’ve taken. Once the issues of economy and security are tackled, the nation will move forward.

NASSNEWS: OK, so what’s your advice for Nigerians in general?

SENATOR ANTHONY SIYAKO YARO: Nigerians should be patient with the government. We have received assurances directly from those in charge of the nation’s economy and security. Things will definitely improve very soon.