THE CASSAVA
A
Publisher &Vice Chainnan
MASTER
Oluwole Awolowo
1ana~ng Director I Editor-in-Chief Sam -Adesua
I
J
'Execulive Director, Finance Olooye (ACA, Ph.D)
/i~oh
Controller <Human Resources) Fola Oke SeruO! Manager (Adverts) Bi si Yomi-Layi nka Senior_ M,1nager (Sales &. Distribu tion) Alieol u Adeyefa dlid Internal Auditor Ay,)kunle Olaoye
Pre duction Manager A. Ojubanire
I s r a~1
Ibadan Office Advert Hot Lines 1l'3023359272 080788917i8 Soul h West Regional Office A j vert Hot Line 0807722i269 KQgi.
Kn ara, EkHi and Codo
s tates Advert -lot Lines 08033540801 08078891 794
.
I.agos
Office
A.dvert Hot ,-ine OS05533~067
(01
~",,1S29;
(01) 6196930
So uth South Regional Office No. 25 Ik ",eITe Rd, Mile 1. Diobu,
. PI HlrCOurt, Rivers Stale t\dvert Hot Line 08033017167
Abuja OfIief Plot 92. Obafemi Awolowo Way. Opp. Jabi Motor Park, Sector Centre B, Jabi, B16, Utako District. Abu/路o. Advert:-1ot Line 08033 99716 06076891797 Kaduna Office AN 20, Lago:; St:reet by Keffi Rd, Kaduna hdvert Hot Line
lkeja Marketing Office: Block C. Fin;t floor. Motol"\vays Centfl', Alausa, Ikeja.
Got news for us? Contact: edi torniger ian tribu ne@ya hoo .com or " II 06050498501
BREADP()LtCY ~'
s
if to demonstrate his seriousness al?out the cassava bread
in the past died at the point of implementation . For one reason or
which has since mounted the
the other, many good intentions of
presidential menu list, President successive administrations had been Goodluck J onathan included the issue killed by sloth and sleaze and the in the 2012 budget. It would probably cassava bread policy is not immune be the first time that a staple food like from the morbidity which such bread, commonly consumed by all ideas suffered in the past if not propwould be getting a serious mention in crly directed. The cassava bread tbe circumstance which a national policy will certainly be resented and budget warranted . Bakeries are to be resisted by many people whose palgiven 10 months to transit from wheat a te will not savour it, and the only to cassavn use while cassava flour thing that may constrain them will equipment would become duty free . be the prohibitive cost of wheat Also , the F ederal Government is to bread. But then , wheat bread may ban the importation of cassav a -flour be readily and cheaply available at and impose a levy on wheat to encoura whistle away across the border age local fa rmers and create jobs. and this could spell danger for the BEFORE President Jonathan included success of the policy. cassava bre ad in the national budget, THE cassava bread policy then is like he bad savoured its taste before the a bitter pill to be swallowed to cure pubUc on national television that it some of the country's economic ailsurprised nobody really that finally, ments. It is a make or mar policy it was cons idered (or mention in the that if well superintended could national b Udget . Not many people will kick-start the liberation of the share t he preferences o f the c ou nt r y from. the wo ods . o!! the presiden t 's pala te, but the truth is that other h and. it could also s pell doom his c h oice o f cassava bread will suit if it is po orly handled . Apart from the nati o n al p u rse . Apart from th e the 1 0 months notice given to the tast e and t -exture which will only take bakeries to change their mode , there time to a djust to, the people stand to is a need for public education from los e nothing from cass ava bread. Ntth e g overnme nt to sensitise the geria is well appointed to produce cas-public to tbe need to adjust their sava in commercial qUaJltities even for tas te for an o ve rall advantage that export and we recall an. erstwhile exwould accrue from giving cassava a perie nce when farmers were led to facellft . It is imperative to make the pro duc e t h e c ommodity in a dimenpeople re a lise th at m a ny g rea t and s ion t ha t eventually led to a g lut. dev e loped countries have had to Rather than g ive a soft landing to the tak e hard decisio ns at s om e point produc ers as is u s u ally don e elsein their live s . A decision for cassava where, they were left to mourn their bread will in t he long run bail th e econ omic uo e s private ly. country out of the shackles of the SUCH an unsa voury e x perience is a disbalance of payments d eficit tha t eni n c entive bu t with cassava bre ad as a sues f rom t he c onsum ptio n of reality now , cassava farmers can rest wh e at which the coun try does not assureci the.t their produc t may not p N:Jduce. ~,ile th ink th",t the gov ernsuffer suc h rejection again as there meDt should launch a passionate will always be a ready market if 40 campaign to promote the consumpper cent o f bread In Nigeria will CODtion of cassava bread. tain cass a v a . It is however expected THE borders should be zealously pothat cert a i n actions will follow the Hced in order to stop the illegal inbudget pronouncement on cassava flux of wheat and its derivatives. bre ad lik e the establishment of facto If this is not properly checked. the ries which will convert cassava from advantages of consuming cassava its raw sta t us to bakery-ready matebread will be long in dawning on rials and s u ch will go a long way to the people. Since this is a demowards all e v iating the chronic problem cratic dispensation, it can only of unemployment in the country. The wage a fiscal war on wheat by makpolicy, as it was outlined in the buding it unprofitable for use as a raw get, could be a turning point in the material for baking bread . Other country' s search for a sustainable derivatives of wheat like cake will source of e mployment for her teem also become very expensive for obing youths if the administration could vious reasons, but this is the sacmuster the courage and discipline to rifice that must be paid for the anmake it real. ticipated emancipation of the NiIT is know~ t h at many n a tional budgets g e rian economy.
------------------~------~--~------~--- -
~ -