‘Worthy ambassador’ — reps commend Bago over agricultural strides in Niger state

The house of representatives has commended Umar Bago, governor of Niger state, over his strides in the agricultural sector in the state.

The parliament praised the governor following a motion of personal explanation moved by Babajimi Benson, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from Lagos state, during plenary on Tuesday.

Benson said some African leaders called him to commend Bago’s agricultural initiatives.

“A military general from Cameroon who studied at Harvard called me recently and he was full of praise for governor Bago. He didn’t know the governor personally,” Benson said.

“Governor Bago has shown an uncommon passion for agricultural revolution, infrastructural development, and religious tolerance.”

Benson recalled how several lawmakers, including himself and Abbas Tajudeen, speaker of the 10th assembly, campaigned against Bago’s speakership aspiration in the ninth assembly.

The lawmaker said the campaign may have propelled Bago to be governor.

Also speaking, Abdullahi Saidu from Niger, said the governor has “achieved what his predecessors could not attain” in the area of agricultural development.

Saidu said the governor is cultivating 250,000 hectares of land, procuring equipment, and signing of strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) with other states.

“Governor Bago has committed 250,000 hectares of land to sugarcane cultivation. In addition to other initiatives, Niger state has what it takes to feed the entire nation,” he said.

Abbas said the governor is a “pride of the house and a worthy ambassador of the parliament”.

Bago, a former member of the house of representatives, was elected as governor of Niger state in 2023.