Deal with anybody caught smuggling fertilizer - Minister

Samuel K. Obour Jul - 23 - 2013 , 01:10

The Upper West Regional Minister, Dr Ephraim Avea Nsoh, has issued a directive to security personnel in the region to deal ruthlessly with anybody caught smuggling fertiliser, saying he has declared zero tolerance for all such acts of economic sabotage.

Dr Nsoh issued the declaration during the second ordinary meeting of the Sissala West District Assembly at Gwollu.

He noted that the government was spending huge sums of money on fertiliser subsidy in order to make the product affordable and accessible to poor farmers in rural communities for them to increase agricultural production and reduce poverty.

He stated that such a vision would not be allowed to be thwarted by the activities of such unscrupulous individuals under his watch as the chief administrator of the region, adding that fuel smugglers would also be pursued with the same vigour.

Dr Nsoh noted that the government would continue to provide the needed basic social and economic infrastructure to set the stage for accelerated development in the district, the region and the nation as a whole.

He, therefore, appealed to the assembly members to support the cause by reducing demands on the assembly and rather be more proactive in supporting its efforts at maximising its internally generated funds (IGFs).

The District Chief Executive (DCE), Mr Moses Dramani Luri, in his address, advised farmers to use agro-chemicals professionally, such that the farmers would not harm themselves and the environment now or in the near future.

He said as a result of the low recovery rate of both the 2012 Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) and “Block Farming” programmes, few farmers had been selected to implement the block farm project in the district, while the SADA programme had been taken over by two service providers, namely, HERITAGE and TUDRIDEP.