Over 1000 farmers in Kasama yesterday ran amok and threatened to beat up a regional government official whom they alleged to have failed to convince his counterpart in Zambia's Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives to release fertilizer for Northern Province.
The irate farmers who gathered at the office of the Permanent Secretary refused to disperse, saying they needed an explanation on why the fertilizer has not been released.
Group spokesperson Joseph Mwamba said that farmers have run out of patience because the Ministry of Agriculture has failed to issue an official statement over government’s position on fertilizer. He said the application period for compound ‘D’ fertilizer has elapsed and wondered why government was delaying in distributing the fertiliser.
He further said that farmers in Northern Province were not ready to receive relief food from Government when they have the capacity and energy to cultivate and source for their own food this season.
The confusion attracted security officers from the Zambia Army and Zambia Police, who rushed to calm the irate farmers and maintain peace for fear that government property might be vandalized.Meanwhile, black marketeers in Kasama are reported to be repacking and mixing compound D fertilizer with sand. This came to light when a farmer who bought compound D fertilizer discovered that half of the bag was packed with sand while the top contained real compound D fertilizer.
Lusaka Times