Alia Links Benue Factory Revival to Peace and Farmland Security

(Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia. Photo Credit: The Sun nigeria)

Benue State Governor, Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, has stated that securing the state and protecting its farmlands remain top priorities for his administration, insisting that lasting peace is crucial to reviving the multi-billion-naira Taraku Mills and preserving Benue’s status as Nigeria’s food basket.

The governor made this known during an unscheduled visit to Taraku Mills in Gwer East Local Government Area, where he inspected ongoing maintenance work at the state-owned company.

He said his priority remains protecting the people and safeguarding their lands so they can continue feeding the nation, vowing that t3rrorists must leave Benue State and that enforcement efforts would continue until perpetrators are brought to justice, insisting that no one would seize Benue land.

He lamented that although Benue farmers have the capacity to supply the mill with soybeans, maize and groundnuts, persistent insecurity in parts of Benue and neighbouring Nasarawa, Cross River, Kogi and Taraba states could undermine revival efforts if farmers are unable to access and cultivate their lands.

He stressed that restoring peace remains essential to successfully reviving the factory, which has remained dormant for several years.

During the inspection, engineers handling the rehabilitation project powered up several serviced machines, which the governor described as evidence of significant progress toward restoring the facility to full operational capacity.

Expressing satisfaction with the pace of work, Alia said the rehabilitation was progressing in line with earlier projections, expressing optimism that production would begin shortly.

He urged farmers across the state, particularly those cultivating soybeans, maize and groundnuts, to scale up production ahead of the mill’s resumption of operations following the completion of test-running.

He noted that reviving Taraku Mills would create a strong agricultural value chain, boost farming activity, generate jobs and strengthen the state’s economy, while maintaining that economic reforms introduced by both the Federal Government and his administration over the past three years were already yielding positive results.

According to a statement by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Tersoo Kula, Alia commended the engineers handling the maintenance work for their professionalism and dedication, while also praising members of the host community for protecting the factory from vandalism and theft during its years of inactivity, describing them as disciplined, responsible and committed to the successful restoration of the company.