 We're glad to know you're still there, still the breakfast on Plus TV Africa, and it's time now to go to the press and see what the headlines on our national dailies are. This morning we're being joined by Mr. Tunde Kolawole, a legal practitioner. He'll be joining us from Lagos here. Good morning and welcome to the program Mr. Kolawole. Good morning my brother. Thanks for having me. It's always a pleasure. Hope you have a good night. Yeah, thank you. We're beginning with Nature News this morning, and Nature News leads with the headline, State Governors Rally to Avert Impending Food Crises in Nigeria, and the rider is, Ask CBN to Transfer Uncle Borah's Funds to Agric Ministry. Now, I saw in the papers, I was it yesterday or so, where someone in the presidency was saying that the federal government is working really hard to make sure that they reduce the prices of food in Nigeria, and I was just laughing anyway, but I would like to know what your thoughts are. The state governors are rallying to avert impending food crises in Nigeria. What do you think? Yeah, honestly speaking, let time go to the, the governments are not getting to avert impending food crisis in the country, but this is a thing that has been in the office for quite some time now, and I can recall that through the media and some other non-governmental organizations that are talking about this, but more on those, the government never saw any challenges in Nigeria. Now I am aware we hope to do something about it. When you saw some families say that the governments are responsible for eating food crisis in Nigeria, the governments should be very responsible for the food crisis. What do I expect? We are more than aside that the local governments are the big joke of protection of food in this country. They also are the best line of defense to get their security, but now I know it. All of the governments in the country are still the local governments. Some of the local governments have not been able to guarantee peace and security in their respective domains anymore. Now some of the correct answers to the local government is to have very high standards and great essential services. We can provide to the people in their respective communities. All sources and sources are poor. So in the absence of security, in the absence of the very low cost of each essential program, all the people are the farmers of the other side of the world. I am a part of that. So there is a crisis in Nigeria. So if you are not talking about the identity of these local governments in the country, then we should not know that they are not going to realize that they have such a responsibility in respect to the entire area. Okay. Now the request is that the anchor borough funds should be transferred to the aggregate ministry. Do you think it would make it more effective? No, I really don't think so. I would have preferred that the anchor boroughs program should be transferred to the respective societies that we have in the country, especially the farmers competing in the society. We find that when that money was donated by the central bank of Nigeria, we find that it is not only people who have no business with farming that are being given that facilities to deal with manas or things. We don't do farming and things like that. What's important to pick another displacement into the country is to sell and make a jungle profit. Again too, at the time when that money was donated by the commercial bank of the country too, the farmers were having access to the wire and get their produce for their money. I mean, they have no access to some of those their money. And then the cost at which the money is boroughed and the bureaucrats who can really access that source are not allowed. We're sort of like the primary farmer in the country finding it difficult to be able to access that source. So I would recommend that we prefer that the funds be transferred to the respective competitive societies in the country, especially the farmers competitive societies. We are the bureaucrats of access. We are the politicians who are not able to influence those who would be getting those money. Transferring it to any of these commercial banks and all that. That's not the proper solution. For those who should not be able to access this money, to access it today. I'm very keen on nature. Okay. Well, we've also seen on Nature News here that Niger State or Niger Government plans a committee to oversee inland waterways safety. Their planning committee is not like they have set up the committee. They're planning to have this committee to assure waterways safety. You know that in recent times we've heard of boots capsizing and a lot of people dying and all that. And we're expecting that something would be done immediately to make sure that these things don't happen again. But right now the state is thinking about setting up a committee that will now go back and sit and think about how to make the waterways safe. I don't know what you think. There have been a lot of issues with respect to all these inland waterways and the coastal waters in the country. You'll recall that during the Vavangida era, there was a law that was made by the Ministry of Transport for the Vavangida. Then they wanted to have access to choice properties to the coastal lands that are bordering the oceans and all that. The Vavangida region made this law, transferring all the coastal lands on some of these waterways to the federal government. And with that, we were able to attract the land in Osborne roads and along Osborne roads and some of these other choice properties. Ever since then, there have been issues with regard to some of these inland waterways and in the coastal lands and all that. I recall that the local government took the federal government to court and all that. I'm not to show that the one that came. I'm not that decision was simply taken by the Supreme Court with regard to some of these inland waterways and waterways. This has not said that the federal government is in charge, it's the one that should be responsible for what's happened along the inland waterways and some of these other coastal lands. So I should say that some of these decisions of our courts and others that have put a lot of strain on what the federal government and what the local government could have done in these areas. But I'm not to start there. The thought is that we cannot stay in our future and the safety of the waterways along the promenade within the terms and localization we could do, the empires are going to help us. Not the federal government and the federal government should sit down and find solutions to how we can manage our inland waterways and our coastal waterways so that both the state government, both the local government and the federal government could have the benefit of those rivers and not so be able to provide adequate security along those rivers. The federal government has made the proposed move in the search of these areas. The President said that the government is searching up the kind of marine police not in standings that the media police can have the marine police which might be and are not doing too well in that area. So with the federal government is searching up the marine police so to be able to provide security and ensure that people no longer drown or get killed when they are committed along the waterways and in the coastal areas and what happens. It should be a work of development and not be Latino. It could be a supplement to what the Nigerian police already had. And if the Nigerian police are already not active in that area I should take. It's not impossible that because we have never had the nation doing the searches and they have not been given the political will to be searching along this area. Okay? People go the waterways and the coastal waterways and the federal government. I am not too sure that they really know in Nigeria that to restore the local government they send the state government to provide security because there are people who use this waterway to commit along this waterway. So if the Niger government is trying to establish the kind of security you have one minute I think it should be a work of development. But certainly not the committee is not too serious. Why not with the committee in the city? We already have a blueprint. We are already a multi-committee as we got work to be done in this area. So that is not necessarily not the committee. The Nigerian state government should just proceed to set up a kind of a manning police in conjunction with a guy from the Nigerian police and the federal government. Well I do hope that the government will do something fast because I am not even thinking about what kind of safety they are going to get except for the fact that they should make it compulsory for people to have life jackets and for the boats or ships that run on the water to be safe enough for the people to commute in. Because we've been seeing 100 and something people drowning at one point 50 something people drowning at some point even if it's one life that is lost because of carelessness of whoever is operating this then something should be done about it. So apart from policing the waterways there should be something a legal framework or something that will make sure that people don't die unnecessarily. Because a lot of these people who go on these waters do not have life jackets they don't have this vest to give to their passengers even though they are making so much money out of it and you also discover that it could be a little bit cheaper for people to travel on water. So why don't the government just look into it first of all and see what can be done maybe float more boats than the private ones and have all the things that are needed on these boats and how it is being operated or they are being operated because needlessly losing people is not good if you ask me whether it is owned by federal government or local government or state government but whoever is closest to the people should be able to do something especially the state government because now we can safely say there is no local government so the state government can do what they need to do and see to it that lives are not lost unnecessarily. We'll just take some of these headlines just read them out and Mr. Kolaule will be rejoining us in the moment to do justice to some of the headlines as time will permit us still on the Nature News we have a story producers, workers, protest bands of sachet alcoholic drinks you know that the legal state government at some point made this pronouncement that there would be no longer any sale of sachet drinks in the parks especially and then it didn't seem to work because you still go to the parks and the first people that you see there selling are the people with this sachet alcoholic drinks they wake up like 3 a.m. I don't know if they don't sleep anyway but no matter how early you go to a park you'll see them, they are the people who are selling not the food, not any other thing but the alcohol that is what they sell and this is going to be banned and we know that something needs to be done about the drug abuse problem that we have in Nigeria as well but the beginning for the federal government or for any government in Nigeria is to talk about burning alcohol I'm just asking what if the only other alternative is to go back to drugs even the people who did not want to be part of the people that abuse drugs I'm not just a scare monger I'm just saying now have we looked at the typical reasons why these things are flourishing the sale of alcoholic drinks the sale of illicit drugs and all that why are these things even flourishing is this something that we can flush out or we are just going to begin to think that we are finding solutions when we are at this point you're burning alcohol at the parks do you think there may be another alternative if you ban this you say sachet and little bottles the ones that are going to be banned everywhere else so you want people to be buying the big bottles now because they may not be able to afford it maybe it will reduce and all that does it really work why is it that people like drinking this alcohol like that is there a problem that needs to be solved I'm just asking I'm not saying there is something to it but it's a good thing that it is going to be banned let's hope that there will be more sanity among the people now okay if you move to the point newspaper we also have interesting headlines Nigerians spent 98 billion dollars on foreign trips education in 10 years Nigerians is it the entire Nigerians what percentage did the politicians have the public office holders what percentage of this 98 billion did they have because if you say Nigerians it groups everybody including me into that group and I don't know if I even went to Cameroon or Niger Republic or Bennett Republic even though some of these places are trackable you can track to these countries but I didn't go and a lot of people watching me right now did not go so who are the people who spent the 98 billion on foreign trips education in 10 years so who are these people I can't afford to send my child to Cambridge or any other institution outside the country a lot of Nigerians cannot do this so who are the people who went to get education from foreign countries who are the people who were making trips to foreign countries so what percentage do these people have who we should have a run down of this kind of thing so that we know the people who are making other countries rich and Nigeria poor let's begin to know these things data is everything nowadays so when we know this we will know what to do about it but the information came from the CBN CBN gave us that information and the writers on that story that CBN says it can't stabilize exchange rate alone puts annual food imports at $15 billion Senate summons Cadoso grill CBN governor on Friday over forex crisis economic challenges I hope something good comes out of it IOCs withhold fresh investment over $1.3 billion debt that is also from the point of the newspaper international oil companies withhold fresh investment over $1.3 billion Naira debt remember that the federal government or the CBN has said that debts owed whoever and they said some of these monies were not legally owed the people they saw some discrepancies and the federal government is not obligated to pay this money and I'm sure that's the issue of bone of contention right now and the IOCs are withholding fresh investment they are not ready to invest anymore because of that $1.3 billion Naira debt that is being owed them Naira weekends at official market bank sell $584 million that is another issue in another story we saw that the Naira gained a little bit in the official market but in the parallel market it did not in fact it ended even lower than it should so we do not know maybe in the next two months we might be selling they dollar one dollar for two thousand Naira nobody knows how it's going to be so if you have a thousand dollars right now you have like 1.5 million Naira it's crazy Tinnable returns orders emergency meeting on food crisis I hope something good comes out of it but I can safely say nothing good will come out of it because you're talking about food crisis what I've seen over the years okay let's hope that something good will come out of it but what I've seen over the years is that when they're talking about reducing the price of items they start with food items like you know everybody will say you just went to the farm you gathered these things and there's no reason why these things should be costly without taking into consideration what is being put in to make sure that this food comes out so that people can buy now a bag of rice is going for 70,000 Naira and it might get to because Easter is coming Lent will begin on the 14th of February with Ash Wednesday and then about the 30th of March or so will be Easter Easter is another time where the rice goes up just like Christmas so who knows how much it will be sold for a bag of rice may cost up to 100,000 nobody knows what it's going to be so have you considered what the farmers have to go through every day to produce one bag of rice you have never considered the herbicides that go into it the fertilizer that goes into it if any farmer is using a machine maybe like a treasure or a harvester or even a tractor to plow the land to plant this rice it is on personal basis you are going to spend money on your own no subsidy of any sort you are going to do it out of your pocket it's not like in those days where the local government had all these things you know around and you just need to go there tell them what you're going to do or you need it for and no matter what you pay it is going to be subsidized that's not what is happening right now is either you take manual labor or you use your money and get a tractor from plow the land and it is not cheap so if you consider all these things after that you harvest this thing you take it to the mill if that is what you do you take it to the mill and the mill will cost another thing because the mill operator knows that to buy diesel to run his what do they call it his mill his rice mill is a very costly venture so he ups the price so if you were getting a bag for let's say 5000 Naira to mill a bag for 5000 Naira now it could be 10,000 Naira you have not considered the transportation where the drivers will be talking about how they buy fuel and all that so it is maybe up by 200% so you factor all these things are in and then when you form a committee and they say they go to the market in the days of the military it used to be price control the army will just come into the market they will flog everybody and if you have 10 Naira you could buy a bag of rice for 10 Naira because they are in the market they flog everybody people will be running and leaving their wares some of these they will be giving out for free some things that should cost up to 1000 Naira will be sold for like 10 Naira or 15 Naira but it doesn't always work that way especially in a democracy so if you are talking about food prices this is the time farmers will be taking care of preparing the ground to plant because the rains will kick in and then some other things will be planted at the beginning of the year so sometimes in March, April a lot of farming will begin until it gets to like November of the year so when you are thinking about these things think about how to give soft loans to farmers think about how to make fertilizers and I've heard to the people who are farmers don't think about going to the market and saying that you are going to cut the prices I don't know if Mr. Kola Wole has joined us again to just take for like 3 minutes or 5 minutes Mr. Kola Wole are you there? quickly yes I'm back I'm back sorry that we had to go continue to the continue to the continue to the just talking about and my audible yes you go ahead as I was saying nice place to talk about the world is very very unattractive that to agriculture to young people and not this last week how much impact a하신 a lot of demonstrations all a bulk of the ideas are products talking about the hardship they are facing, in terms of even being able to meet the core purpose of the family. Farmers in Germany also have a massive impact, but in the whole of Europe, most farmers in the whole of Europe are back home. It's a musician's rallying back, and blockages and water flow. This is not the case. The point now is that families do not get to commit to the people. It is also not to commit to the family. It becomes a real possible because of the people. So the farmers are able to commit suicide in Europe and also selling their land, their back home, some other places and all that. So the truth of the matter is that to attract people to farming, and let those who are there, when they are all stay there, you need to put a lot of incentives and give them a lot of subsidy for them to postpone to be able to retain this farmer there, in a different farm. The alternative would be for humanity to begin to work on capsules of supplements and water, so that on a daily basis, the nature of what we need to become is different. Human beings, by the way, require to swam around capsules, and all the food nutrients that they will require will be derived from that capsule of nutrients that they drink and what are they called. As it is today, these families becoming better and better at farming, that people, farmers are committing suicide. People do not want to farm in Europe and America. We are going to have a little more incentive, we are going to have more sources to farm here and there. You will know that to get to go to a farm in this part of Europe, so that the challenges are hard, it will become more difficult for an employer that is not impossible. So we have to know that massive, massive sources in the area of farming, the sizes begin to work on food for people, artificial food, that people will now eat, and those farmers will no longer be required to provide us with the kind of food that we can now eat as a human being. Don't have the two ways in which I think some of these challenges of victory are in their face, but that humanity is facing over the world that will be resolved. Yeah, well, I hope something positive will be done about that. And let's move to the Guardian newspaper right now. We've been told about an egg a day. That's a source of protein that everybody needs. But inflation, price hike, push an egg a day diet beyond Nigeria's reach. That is what the leading headline in the Guardian newspaper right now. An egg a day is not a practicable thing according to this report. What do you think? Yeah, we don't really like the chiefs' needs of having access to protein. And then when we want to supplement the food of the diet of the children, we don't have to see to give them one egg a day, give them a mix. It could come in from a tea or bread, or in your baby's world. And then we have to do a bit of supplementary protein in the absence of the specific reasons that we have in the market today. In the absence of the opportunity to be as good, to be as sweet, to be as healthy in some other way, in a locality that's not enough. Then there comes the very useful means of supplementary protein. Also we know, or you also require to know, that poultry pigs can do expensive matters, most farmers are able to produce their birds with the right quantity of poultry. Because if they have to do that, they will not be able to meet the cost of their food also. So all of them begin to find ways and means to supplement or to reduce the food consumption of the animals and birds. And when you include that, you don't get the adequate use that you require others to cook air from this bed and also the quantity of meat and mix that those animals can produce. So we need to really work up and find solutions to this. We are not a problem with regard to producing the right quantity of air. And also, no. But then there is no smell in this that we have to make on the food table. There are some products that are produced that you can't put air in there, as long as you are able to produce some of those products. So it's a very difficult situation that we are finding outside. But these are also problems that are not in supplementary food. If we don't put air into the flour, we might be able to solve some of these problems. Yeah. My fear is that everywhere you are seeing pockets of protests here and there. In Niger State, the other day, in Delta State, in so many other places, people are protesting here and there. And it begins like that. Like my people say, a fire starts small before you know it, it has consumed a whole area. And all the headlines or almost all the headlines here are bothering on hardship. We have these regional groups hinge coup on hardship's failure of democracy. And then we also have bishops, Northern Elders, lament rising inflation, hardship insecurity. We have Nigeria, Burkina Faso, four others to experience food crises till May 2024. And then we have Lagos, TUC, others, protest ban on sachet alcohol, side potential 500,000 job losses. Let's comment on that. Yeah. I want to apply to the people, you know, at the junta state. So please work with the legal equipment so that we can find solutions. So this is sachet and many plastics that litter our environment. They are not a general idea. They come to the political environment. They have to do some work to really packet some of these problems that come in sachets and northern. And then there could also be a possibility to really reform and to recall back all those sachets and sachets that are used to produce some of these products. They have to go to the back of the site to push back the hands of the local government to clear up the environment. All the way that the plastic and sachet, the plastic, sachet and water. They come to the government. They have to do some work to really help the local government and also solutions. And they are not machinery. According to Haethi, they are not enough machinery now. They are not going to be able to do anything. They are coming out of the ocean. They need help. They are going to clear out the environment. They need to turn on the plastic and sachet and water. So we need to really fix that. We are open to the government to find some change to the plastic and sachet positions that are very prevalent in all our environment and in our region. Okay. Just a final question. I'm very, very, very fast about it, please. Naira Free Fall. CBN blames rising number of Nigerians cooling abroad and medical tourism. They say that's the reason for the Naira Free Fall. Do you agree? Very fast, please. Well, I agree. But the question was, you have to see people say, who are the people who send their children abroad for education? Who are the people who are medical tourism? Is it you or Naira? What do you mean? The people, the people, the people who come in which is the big civil servant and the people big army officer, big army officer, big police officer. No children are cooling abroad. What do you mean? Because if that was the case, not because of the book, the children who are employed the whole children of the big people in the style. They are also children. They are also mostly children of people. And the children are cool abroad. So, if they see Naira, if the people are getting medical tourism, people are cool abroad that are coming to see her. Then they should stop asking the people to send their children abroad. They should find the people that are the same. And find the people, and find the people. To stop their own children from traveling abroad to stop the medical tourism. So, give them that. All right. This is what we have to wrap it up. This is what we have to wrap it up. Mr. Kolaulay, thank you so much for being a part of our program as usual. It's a pleasure. It was a pleasure having you. Thank you for coming. Okay. We've been talking with Mr. Tunde Kolaulay, a legal practitioner here in Lagos State. We were looking at the headlines this morning. We'll take a break. And when we return, we'll be talking or we'll be looking at our first hot topic, which is on female genital mutilation. Stay with us.