By Eniola Ambosege
The member representing Calabar and Odukpani Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Bassey Akiba, has distributed cassava stems to constituents in Cross River State.
This is part of an agricultural empowerment initiative.
The exercise, which took place on Friday at Okoyong in Odukpani Local Government Area, saw beneficiaries receiving cassava stems and fertiliser, with the lawmaker describing the intervention as a step towards boosting local food production and supporting rural farmers.
However, the distribution has generated mixed reactions among residents of the constituency, with some questioning the adequacy and timing of the empowerment programme.
A constituent, who preferred animosity told Primetime that the items distributed were part of a Federal Government agricultural intervention programme rather than a personal initiative of the lawmaker.
According to him, the programme was approved by President Bola Tinubu and released to lawmakers early last year but was only distributed recently. He alleged that the delay had affected the quality of the cassava stems.
“The cassava stems were stored for over a year and many of them have dried up. Also, this is not the right planting season because the heat is still intense,” he said.
He further criticised the action, describing it as symbolic and insufficient to make any meaningful impact on farming activities at the grassroots.
Despite the criticisms, some residents defended the intervention. A supporter of the lawmaker, Otu Ita, said the distribution showed that the representative had made efforts to engage with his constituents.
“At least he has done something, unlike claims that he has done nothing for the constituency,” Ita said.
Efforts to get a response from Akiba were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone were not answered as of the time of filing this report.
