Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), has objected to offers made by the government of Vietnam to subsidise the country’s rice export to Nigeria as part of a trade deal between the two nations.
Oshiomhole told visiting Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister, Voung Dinh Hue, that the term, unfavorable as it is, will hurt local farmers as well as Nigeria’s quest for self-sufficiency in the local production of the staple crop.
Instead he urged the Vietnamese leader to encourage their farmers to take full advantage of the nation’s vast arable land to export their skill and reap benefit from feeding Nigeria’s 200 million mouths.
He emphasized that it is for this reason the APC leadership is in full support of decision by government to close its borders to curb the dumping of contaminated products and chemicals through its porous borders.
The APC national chairman therefore called on Nigerians and especially the National Assembly to give its support to the border closure until the nation’s neighbors realise the importance of fair trade.
While expatiating on the conversation he had with the visiting Deputy Prime Minister, Oshiomhole called for an extended closure of the borders to halt ongoing conspiracy by neighbours to make Nigeria a dumping ground for smuggled, substandard good and ammunitions.
“Nigerians should unanimously back the decision of the Federal Government to close our borders until our neighbours realize importance of free and fair trade.
“Nigeria must not be made a dumping ground for imported food, imported rice and other smuggled chemicals and drugs into our country. I think this is one policy we should applaud across party divide, across primordial sentiment.
“People should salute the courage of President Muhammadu Buhari in shutting down the borders, because for too long, Nigeria had been a big brother to our neighbors, now that big brother is hurting and hurting very badly.
“We must secure ourselves. We must keep those borders closed, even if it is shut for three years it doesn’t matter,” he stated.
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