Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
A group, Benin National Congress (BNC), has lamented how the managerial crisis and power tussles rocking the Nigerian Institute For Oil Palm Research (NIFOR), has hampered the nation’s yearly productions of 2.5 million tons of Palm oil and Palm kernel oil.
The revelation was contained in a statement titled “Open letter to the Honourable Minister of Agriculture and Food Security on the seeming gross mismanagement of affairs at the Nigerian Institute For Oil Palm Research and attempt to breach the peace at the Institute and host communities and NIFOR” signed by its president, Aiyamenkhue Edokpolo and made available to newsmen in Benin City.
The group, through its president, Edokpolo, said it is quite unfortunate that an institution established 84 years ago cannot compete with the Malaysians who came to collect seedlings from them, stressing that the twist of event is so disappointing.
“We are particularly disappointed at the administrative events stifling the performance and progress of some research Institutes in Nigeria.
“Research Institutes were established as research and innovation arm of the Federal Government, to carry out research in their mandate crops for genetic improvement,
post-harvest loss mitigation, extension of developed technologies and monitoring of feedback from technology beneficiaries.
” If these activities were faithfully implemented, Nigeria would have recorded high food sufficiency if other factors remained constant.
” If we take the Nigerian Institute For Oil Palm Research as a case in point, our investigation showed that the Institute is about 84 years old.
“The Malaysians visited Nigeria for oil Palm seeds when NIFOR was about 30years old and collected our materials to improve what they had.
“Shortly after that, the Malaysians became the largest exporter of Palm oil in the world market. They continued until the Indonesians copied them and displaced them from the first position because Indonesia has more land and an adapted technology. Today Indonesia produces more than 34million tons of Palm oil and Malaysia produces about 19million tons of palm oil while Nigeria produces about 1.3million tons per year. Our total requirement of Palm oil and Palm kernel oil is about 2.5million tons per year”, Edokpolo said.
Edokpolo, while trying to find the root cause of the problem, laid it at the door steps of the leadership tussles in the Institution.
“Since the year 1994, the Institute has been overtaken by crisis fomented by alleged gross mismanagement at the Institute level and supervisory oversight.
“In 1994, industrial action by the junior staff led to seed contamination which could not be resolved until 2015 (21 years later) during which time many Nigerians planted contaminated and underperforming seeds from NIFOR which further exacerbated the palm oil and palm kernel oil supply deficit in Nigeria.
“In 2017, NIFOR was embroiled in another avoidable leadership crisis that shut down the Institute for about 3years.
“In the year 2017, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture appointed Dr. Napoleon Aisueni as Director/Chief Executive Officer after his retirement from service. Within a week of his appointment, the Honorable Minister for the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) withdrew the appointment and appointed Dr. Charles Aisagbonhi as Acting Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer
following which he was confirmed as Director/CEO. Dr. N. O. Aisueni took legal action and in 2018, he was given judgment that his appointment was legitimate and should be allowed to function as Director/CEO of NIFOR but the FMARD denied him. Dr Charles Aisagbonhi retired in 2018 and handed over to Dr. Celestine Ikuenobe who was made acting Executive Director/CEO by ARCN.
“Crisis erupted that shut down the Institute for more than two years and Dr. Ikuenobe could not assess the Institute or the
office for that period of time. On resumption, he was confirmed quietly by the FMARD as Director/CEO
up till date.
“The case between Dr. N. O. Aisueni and the Ministry has been running for about 5years and the FMARD is waiting for him to die so the case can naturally cease to exist rather than calling Dr. N. O. Aisueni for negotiation so the case can be taken out of the court and NIFOR be allowed to breath.
“How can the same Ministry appoint two officers into one CEO position within the same period and expect work
to go normally?”, He asked rhetorically.
In finding a solution to the crisis rocking the institution, Edokpolo further called for the amendment of the Act with which the FMARD is appointing Director/Chief Executive Officer.
“Following our investigation, we wish to inform the Honorable Minister that the Act with which the FMARD is appointing Director/Chief Executive Officer is more than 40years old and has been overtaken by events.
“The new Act and guidelines for research Institute Administration specifies that the position is Executive Director/CEO”, Edokpolo said.