Deputy Speaker debunks made in India garri, says Nigeria made it

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon. Lasun Yusuf, has debunked the insinuation over ‎’made in India Garri’, saying that Nigerians produced it.

He said this in Osogbo during an empowerment programme organized for 500 farmers and youths of the state.

He explained that the only way for the country to get out of the current economic recession was through value addition to locally made products to meet International standard and acceptance.

He noted that packaging has many effects on a product, saying that if a product was good but not packaged very well it wount not be acceptable by the people.

The deputy Speaker while speaking on the alleged importation of “Garri” from India, said “there is nothing like made in India “Garri”. Nigerian “Garri” was packaged by Indians. The Indians only took the advantage of packaging the product in a modern way.”

He stated that such initiative and packaging ought to have been taken by Nigerians long ago.

Yusuf also suggested mass participation by the Nigerian youths in livestock and crop farming as a panacea to current economic quagmire.

In the empowerment programme that gulped a whopping N250milion, no fewer than 500 people of the state, among which are farmers, women and youths benefited through training, cash gift and provision of free equipment and materials in their various areas of specialization.

The beneficiaries include 350 farmers who were nominated and chosen across the local governments of Osun State by the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) and 150 youths.

A total of 50 people were trained in mushroom plantation, preservation and marketing, 100 others were trained in fishery farm and 200 participants were lectured on plantain plantation.

The 150 youths were bid to be trained in ICT, but the late delivery of materials needed for training delayed the programme. But the training would start from Monday, February 27, 2017.

After completion of the ICT training, each of the 150 youths would collect a N270 worth laptop, six-month etisalat subscription and a sum of N50, 000.

The 350 beneficiaries who had completed their training were awarded certificate and presented gifts on Friday, February 24, at the Constituency Office of the deputy speaker located at Oroki Estate, Osogbo.

Each of the trained fish farmers was given a sum of N50, 000, coal and electric powered oven, fish smoken kiln and fish box while those that went for mushroom training were given a sum of N100, 000.

The farmers that were trained in plantain were given 20 suckers of plantains, cutlasses, wheel-biro and N75, 000 cash each.

Speaking on the objective of the programme, the Consultant, Prof Olufemi Peters, said Lasun wanted to encourage self reliance and high productivity in agricultural sector to combat poverty headlong.

One of the beneficiaries, Mr Ayodeji Bolarinwa, a farmer described the empowerment programme as timely and needed at the present time to reduce poverty to the barest minimum among the people of the state.

Commending the Deputy Speaker, another beneficiary, Mrs Idowu Ayobode, said the Ilobu born lawmaker has demonstrated his keenness in promoting agriculture and empowering the people to dissuade them from running after politicians to beg for money.