We used N18.9 billion to clear bush — Agric ministry tells House of Reps

The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said it spent a whooping N18.9 billion to clear bush, prepare land among others during the COVID-19 lockdown.

The Chairman of the Public Account Committee of the House of Representatives Committee (PAC), Wole Oke, said the ministry has made this revelation while responding to a probe on how it spent the said sum.

The ministry of agric is currently the subject of an investigation by the House committee into a N18.9 billion contract that has been used for bush clearing, preparing the ground, and restoring soil plant laboratories during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown.

According to Oke, “During the lockdown of the country as a result of COVID-19, some companies took contracts worth about N18 billion for bush clearing from the federal ministry of agriculture for land preparation, rehabilitation of soil plant lab and others. We cannot shave their heads in their absence.

We have invited them to come and give us their own side by responding to the issues and show us the places they are supposed to have cleared. They have to take us to the land they cleared.

We have invited the ministry of agriculture, and they have made (a) submission. But some of our members whose constituencies these projects were supposed to be domiciled doubted the existence of these projects, and for (a) fair hearing, we have invited the companies that got the contract for them to come and tell this committee where and when the jobs were executed.”