Gov. Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau, has called on the Nigerian Army and other security agencies to support his bid toward tackling food scarcity in the state.
Muftwang made the call at a dinner organised by the state government in honour of Lt.-Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), on Friday in Jos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the COAS and other senior army officers were in Jos for the 2024 Nigerian Army Day Celebrations.
Mutfwang, who attributed the looming food insecurity in the state to the myriad of security challenges, called on the army to support his administration toward ending attacks on communities.
The governor maintained that the incessant attacks on farmers and destruction of crops on farmlands by gunmen were largely responsible for the rising food scarcity in the state and country in general.
”While we talk about security of lives and property, we cannot forget the issue of food security.
”Our people deserve the opportunity to put their lands to profit; all they need is a secured and peaceful environment to cultivate these lands.
”The inability of our people to farm has affected the supply of food to all part of the country.
”But we have every confidence in the army, particularly under the current COAS to defeat all security challenges confronting us in Plateau.
”So, we count your leadership to bring us out of the woods,”he said.
Corroborating Mutfwang, Sen. Jonah Jang, the former governor of the state and a retired Air Commodore, commended the Nigerian military for the efforts toward addressing the myriad of security challenges in the country.
Jang, who described the military as a ”noble” profession, advised Plateau citizens, particularly the youths to join the armed forces so as to contribute their quarter toward nation building.
Earlier, Lagbaja, commended the governor for running an all-inclusive government, aimed at ensuring a peaceful Plateau.
The COAS, who described that the current security challenges in the state as perilous, however, said that the government was on the path of recovery.
He thanked the governor for the support to the army and other security agencies in their bid toward ending all forms of insecurity in the state and country in general.