The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the Federal Government, led by President Bola Tinubu, of manipulating food prices and using hunger as a political tool amid Nigeria’s escalating economic hardships.
In a strongly worded statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC dismissed recent government claims of a decline in food prices as artificial and deceptive. The party charged that the fall in prices is the result of import waivers flooding the Nigerian market with cheap foreign foodstuffs, a move that has undermined local farmers who are grappling with soaring costs of fertilizers, escalating insecurity, and displacement, particularly in northern Nigeria.
This, the party argued, is a “deliberate weaponisation of poverty for political gain. The ADC warned that the reported drop in prices is temporary, unsustainable, and driven by panic rather than sound agricultural policy or increased local production. It called for an urgent overhaul of Nigeria’s agricultural strategies to protect domestic food production and promote food price stability, urging policies that would secure the livelihood and safety of farmers while working towards long-term food sovereignty.
The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, had earlier credited the price drop to improved local production, targeted interventions, and the onset of the harvest season. Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Abdullahi, highlighted government initiatives such as the National Agricultural Growth Scheme Agro-Pocket as contributing factors.
Despite this, the ADC remains critical, emphasizing the growing challenges farmers face, particularly with input costs and security threats, which continue to hamper agricultural productivity and sustainability.
The ADC’s accusations come at a critical time as Nigeria faces significant economic pressures and the government seeks to assure the public of its capacity to stabilize essential food prices.
