By: Ike Philip Abiagom
The new management team of the Benin-Owena River Basin Development Authority (BORBDA) has been charged to work hard to meet the high expectations of the Tinubu administration and the generality of Nigerians.
The Asagba of Asaba, His Royal Majesty, Asagba Prof Epiphany Azinge, SAN, OON, FNIALS, gave the charge on Wednesday when the Managing Director of the Federal Agency, Dr Olufemi Adekanbi, led the management team on a courtesy visit to his Palace.
Asagba Prof Azinge noted that past experience showed that the Authority had not done much to justify the purpose for which it was established and urged the MD and his team to deploy renewed energy, vigour and determination to driving the well-articulated passion and vision of the establishment to be able to make a difference.
The First Class traditional ruler reminded the Adekanbi – led team that the challenges before it were enormous, but not insurmountable, stressing that they should work towards winning the confidence and support of Nigerians for the Agency.
The Asagba said the future of the country depended largely on the kind of leadership persons in authority could provide for the people, insisting that past agricultural policies and programmes of the Federal Government, from the days of Operation Feed the Nations (OFN), failed due to the lack of political will to drive them.
He identified the unconsciousness of leaving behind enduring legacy for posterity as a missing link in the country and challenged the new BORBDA management to strive to leave their footprints in the sands of time.
Asagba Prof Azinge commended the Federal Government for mandating the Authority to go into large scale farming, with its over 10,000 hectares of land across the four mandate states of Edo, Delta, Ondo and Ekiti, promising to sensitize the people and create awareness on the programme, in view of its potential benefits, especially to the youths.
The Asagba used the opportunity to reflect on the non – participation of the people of Asaba in agrarian activities, including fishing that would have thrived with the location of the town on the bank of the River Niger, and declared his willingness to change the narrative through advocacy.
Earlier in his remarks, the Managing Director of the Benin-Owena River Basin Development Authority, Dr. Olufemi Adekanbi, congratulated Asagba Prof Azinge on his ascension to the throne, describing him as a highly respected and influential traditional ruler in the country.
Dr. Adekanbi said the new BORBDA management team was constituted to drive President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on agriculture, pointing out that the focus was on mass production of rice and other farm produce, with a view to addressing food insecurity and creating jobs for the youths.
He disclosed that over 10,000 hectares of land were available for the programme, out of which less than 500 hectares were currently being farmed and solicited the assistance of the Asagba in creating awareness on the need for the people to key in.
