The Ondo State Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ONDOCCIMA) has called on the state government to immediately look into the forceful takeover of a government forest reserve by a private company and reverse whatever agreement it has with the said private company.
The chamber, rising from a meeting, held in Akure, the state capital, lamented the condition of the more than 10,000 farmers displaced by the forceful takeover of the forest.
According to a statement signed by the public relations officer of the chamber, Adeboro Onibalusi, the takeover of the forest has plunged the farmers, families and several thousands of other dependants into further misery following the worsening inflation rate in the state.
“The forceful and crude evictions of the farmers by fully armed soldiers who were supported by men of the Amotekun corps and the wanton destruction of cash crops worth millions of naira is condemnable,” the statement reads.
The statement read further, ” There is an urgent need for the government to take a look at the economic state of our dear state. The latest National Bureau of Statistics data on inflation across the country, which was released last Saturday. listed Ondo State among the three states with highest inflation rate in the country.
“This is very sad and challenging to our people. The poor farmers and civil servants have been further pushed into a life of misery by the inflation.”
“Findings have shown that the main reason for this killer inflation in Ondo State is as a result of capital flight encouraged by government policies and actions. For example, if you look closely you’ll find out that most, if not all the government jobs, particularly constructions going on across the state are executed by people from outside the state.
“These are majorly people who are not resident in the state. What happens is that whatever money that they make from Ondo State are taken back to where they come from. They only ccme into the State to make money and such money is not spent here, Rather they go back to spend the money where they live. This is one of the major reasons for the parlous state of the economy in Ondo State and we want to plead with the governor to kindly take immediate action to revert the troubling situation.”
On the much-anticipated removal of the susbsidy on petroleum, ONDOCIMMA said its members are in total support of the plan, describing it as long over due. It, however, urged government to be transparent and to make good use of the money that would be realised from the removal.
“Our position on the anticipated subsidy removal is that it is a welcome development and long overdue. But government should be transparent and make judicious use of the money realized after the subsidy must have been removed. Also, palliatives and incentives should be made available to citizens and business.organisations.”
Meanwhile, the chamber also condemned what it termed as a resurgence in cases of kidnappings in the state. It urged the police and the Amotekun Corps to double their efforts to check the ugly trend.
Won ni kekere la to n peka iroko ,to ba dagba tan ebo kabiti lo ma n gba lowo eni.