Rice millers condemn senators’ stance on borders as unpatriotic

The Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) has described the criticism by some of the senators at the National Assembly against the land borders closure of the Federal Government (FG) as an act of insincerity to the nation’s development saying the measure was already yielding good dividend to agricultural productivity of rice and other produce. This was contained in a press statement made available to Food farm News, in Abuja.

In the statement signed by the RIMAN’s Chairman, Mr. Peter Dama, the group stated: “we condemn completely, the criticism by some senators on the decision of the government to close the borders as their stand didn’t seem patriotic”, adding that the government should sustain the border closure for the development of the country’s rice value chain urging that the borders be re-opened only when there were diplomatic solutions to rice smuggling into Nigeria.

 RIMAN, however commended Senator Adamu Aleiro and eight other Senators who sponsored the motion titled “The impact of border closure on Nigerian economy” which resolved to support the president over the border closure’’ added Nigerians must eat what the produce.

 The group also commended President Mohammadu Buhari for his courage for this measure and called on government not to succumb to any black mail or pressure to give in on the call to reopen the closed borders.

The statement further stressed that government decision was in the interest of the nation towards enhancing local productivity of rice and other agricultural produce for more job creation, poverty alleviation and boosting generally of the nation’s economy adding that ‘’moribund rice milling factories have started operating in full capacity all over and thereby creating job for the teeming unemployed youths.’’

RIMAN stated further that ‘’Nigerians are now purchasing and eating fresh quality nutritious, healthy and tasty Nigeria Rice as against foreign rice that has been stored in silos for over five years with chemicals which leads to unexplained development of different diseases like cancer that afflict Nigerians.”

The group also called on ‘Nigerian rice’ consumers to be patriotic by patronizing only ‘Nigerian rice’ as this will further help the country in reaching self-sufficiency in local rice production.