Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has blamed Nigeria’s long-standing dependence on rice imports on the decision by the civilian administration in 1979 to lift a ban imposed by the outgoing military government.
Obasanjo, said this on Thursday, at the International Memorial Lecture and Leadership Conference marking the 50th anniversary of the assassination of former Head of State, Gen Murtala Muhammed.
Recounting events at the end of military rule in 1979, Obasanjo said his government had been on the verge of achieving self-sufficiency in rice production before handing over to civilians.
Obasanjo, further described the act as a notorious case of abuse involving a politically connected importer who inflated the cost of a rice contract to extract kickbacks.