Farmers protest selection method
Oct 08, 2009
FARMERS in Lira district have asked the Government to investigate how the six farmers benefiting from the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) in every parish were selected.
FARMERS in Lira district have asked the Government to investigate how the six farmers benefiting from the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) in every parish were selected.
Receiving NAADS implements on Tuesday, the farmers said most of the beneficiaries had been selected through political influence and nepotism.
“Potential farmers who have something on the ground to show were left out simply because they don’t have any relative at the sub-county,†Okello Alele, one of the farmers said.
Another farmer who declined to be named suggested that the selection criteria should be reviewed if NAADS was to succeed.
The minister of Agriculture, Hope Mwesige, recently suspended all the sub county NAADS extension workers including the coordinators to pave way for investigation over the abuse of the project.
Milly Mugenyi, a technical support officer from the NAADS secretariat advised farmers to plant the seeds.
She explained that farmers who were not selected would also have opportunity to acquire the planting materials.
Meanwhile farmers in Adwari Sub County on Monday denied taking 300 bags of cassava cutting delivered by NAADS.
They said the cassava cutting was of poor quality and that they could not risk taking them because it will not germinate.
The supplier, Felix Olwol of Tough Line enterprise was left with the bags at Adwari sub-county headquarters. Ends.
Receiving NAADS implements on Tuesday, the farmers said most of the beneficiaries had been selected through political influence and nepotism.
“Potential farmers who have something on the ground to show were left out simply because they don’t have any relative at the sub-county,†Okello Alele, one of the farmers said.
Another farmer who declined to be named suggested that the selection criteria should be reviewed if NAADS was to succeed.
The minister of Agriculture, Hope Mwesige, recently suspended all the sub county NAADS extension workers including the coordinators to pave way for investigation over the abuse of the project.
Milly Mugenyi, a technical support officer from the NAADS secretariat advised farmers to plant the seeds.
She explained that farmers who were not selected would also have opportunity to acquire the planting materials.
Meanwhile farmers in Adwari Sub County on Monday denied taking 300 bags of cassava cutting delivered by NAADS.
They said the cassava cutting was of poor quality and that they could not risk taking them because it will not germinate.
The supplier, Felix Olwol of Tough Line enterprise was left with the bags at Adwari sub-county headquarters. Ends.