The Joint Technical Task Team on Emergency Food Response to COVID-19 has hailed security operatives for the compliance towards President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive to ensure easy movement of agricultural products and inputs.

The team was instated last Friday by the Minister of Agriculture, Alhaji Sabo Nanono, to facilitate unrestricted movement of farmers and their essentials – food, livestock, and agricultural inputs – during the lockdown.

So far, there has been adherence to the directive by security operatives across the country, according to the Chairman of the team, AIG Austin Agbonlahor.

Agbonlahor made this known when he led the team to major checkpoints along the Abuja – Kaduna, and Abuja – Keffi dual carriageways in the North- Central Geopolitical Zone, stopping at Tarfa in Kaduna, Sabon Wuse in Niger and Keffi, Nasarawa, for on-the-spot compliance assessment.

In his remarks, the AIG said that the presidential directive was facilitated by the task team to ensure strict compliance, in order to avert food scarcity amid the pandemic.

He lauded the officers on duty and enjoined them to ensure proper screening of the vehicles conveying agricultural products.

Agbonlahor, however, restated that the directive does not allow for movement of persons, illegal arms and ammunition, and illicit drugs.

He further disclosed that similar security checkpoints were replicated across the 36 states of the federation.

“The primary objective was to facilitating the free and unhindered movement of food, livestock and agricultural inputs as well as farmer’s movement across the nation during the lockdown and 2020 farming season to avoid food crises while also assuring that the exercise is a continuous one,” he said.

SOURCE: AGRONIGERIA