NASS sets to probe 15% cassava bread levy

Speaker of the house of Representative, Yakubu Dogara

·        Cried out on 10m job losses with investment

The House of Representatives, National Assembly, sitting in Abuja has mandated the Committees on Agriculture and Banking/ Currency to investigate the disbursement of 10billion cassava bread fund just as they complained about job and investment losses of growers running to millions of naira due to delay in implementation.

Hon. Ibrahim Ayokunle Isiaka had moved the motion against the neglect of cassava bread value chain development in the last five years despite the introduction of 15% levy on every wheat imported into the country since year 2012 towards the development of all the value chains of its productivity saying that cassava farmers had lost investment in excess of N360 million due to break down in the value chain necessitated by non-implementation of the programme within a year.

 

In the plenary proceeding of the Thursday December 21, 2017, the speaker, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara had approved among others a constituted committees to probe the 15% levy of 2012 on  every wheat imported into the country based on the promise that the proceeds of the tariff will be used to develop the local content of cassava bread value chain.

Part of the contents of motion read by Hon. Isiaka, and seconded by Hon. Shuaibu Abdulrahman was stated as “ the role of casssva in the agricultural sector in Nigeria cannot be over emphasized. Cassava is already easy to cultivate and friendly with soils nationwide, it is highly affordable, has varying uses and is staple Nigerian food. The fact that the funds earmarked for the programme are on the verge of being diverted and the House of Representative should not be seen to let such happen without adequate investigating it. The motion was put to vote and passed”

What the committees are to investigate includes (1) to carry an investigative audit of the releases, cumulative, contributions, owings and level of implementation of the cassava bread fund programme, (ii) examine the losses suffered by cassava growers association and the value chain therein, with the view of compensating and encouraging them and (111) to determine modalities for rejuvenating the cassava bread grower programme. They were to report back in the next six weeks for further legislative action.

The motion noted that the introduction of the levy was as a result of the buying-in of the three major Associations of which necessitated a 20% increase in the price of bread in 2012 due to corresponding increase of N1,000 on the price of wheat by flour millers being an in direct reaction to the levy for the implementation of the local content cassava inclusion in which  a committee was instituted in 2013 to guide the management, operations and disbursement of the first tranche of the N9.999 Billion out of the then balance of N200 billion thereby taking after Trinidad and Tobago model.

Food Farm News April-May, 2016  edition had published about some aggrieved stakeholders calling on President Mohammadu Buhari to turn his corruption search light in the direction of how the over ten billion naira intervention fund meant to enhance cassava productivity towards 10% inclusion of its high quality flour into wheat bread was spent.

 

They argued that the purpose for which the money was budgeted has been defeated as many farmers are already facing challenges of where to get market for their produce saying the ministry of agriculture, the Bank of Industry and Bank of Agriculture had distorted the purpose the money was meant thereby creating the present market challenges. 

Cassava productivity promotion was one of the crops that attracted the last administration’s attention based on the determination to use the produce derivative in high quality flour to checkmate huge bill on wheat import.

The stakeholders expressed resentment on the way and manner 10 billion naira intervention fund was shared and spent saying investigation must be carried out as farmers cannot be suffering after going into farming based on promises to ensure off takers through processors and master bakers adding how was the money meant for guarantee minimum price of High Quality Cassava Flour with the ministry spent.