Lamentation As FG Abandons Multi-Million Naira Livestock Farm In Enugu Community

The people of Okpuje community in Igboeze South Local Government Area of Enugu State, Monday, decried the abandonment of a multi-million naira livestock farm located in their community.

THE WHISTLER gathered that the farm, established during the regime of former President Shehu Shagari, has been lying fallow for many decades. It never operated optimally until it was eventually abandoned, a source said.

A search by our correspondent showed that various buildings at the site are dilapidated. However, there are some pigs said to be owned by some private individuals kept in some dilapidated structures. Few are said to be owned by the government. Our correspondent counted about sixty-two of them.

The natives regretted that the project, which they thought would provide jobs and wealth to the community, had turned to be a white elephant.

Raphael Ayogu is a retired secondary school principal and native of Okpuje. He said, “Since the inception of the project, our community did not gain anything from it. It is meant to rear pigs and then marketed to the world. A similar one was built at Ibadan, and it is functioning maximally. Our community ought to benefit from the scheme is many ways. But it has not been functioning. It is a federal government project. From inception, the project did not impact positively on the natives.

“In fact, no Okpuje man benefitted as permanent staff. The few that worked there now are not directly employed by the federal government. It is the site manager that gives them tips. The workers are simply abandoned. This large expanse of land was given to them free of charge. When the issue of compensation came up, our community told FG to pay for only economic trees. This is because of the Land Use Decree. We are annoyed.”

Mr Anthony Ugwuoke is also a native. He said, “I urge the government to make the project functional like its counterpart in Ibadan. That agency has no staff. It is only one Thomas that I know that is working there on a casual basis. We the natives of Amaho village donated the land. Our people have been appealing to concerned authorities to revive the livestock, but all to no avail.”

On efforts made so far to draw the attention of concerned authorities, a member of the community based in Abuja, Engr Amechi Obochi, said some stakeholders of the community had been writing to the concerned units at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture in Abuja, but the outcomes had been demoralizing.

Quoting him, “Some years ago, I wrote severally to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture on the need to revive the Federal Livestock, but the requests never saw the light of the day. I made serious visits to the ministry, yet nothing came out of it. The then director, one Mr Oguejiofor, on his part, wrote severally to Abuja, but nothing happened. Oguejiofor did everything possible to keep the place going, but the Nigeria factor never allowed it.”