3rd July, 2014
When Prince Lanre Ettu left banking for farming, his friends questioned his decision. They thought he had made a costly mistake, but that decision paid off years later.
For Prince Ettu, farming is far more lucrative than banking. He earns five times more as a farmer than he did as a banker.
His love for farming dates back to when he lived with his maternal grandmother who was a big time cocoa and plantain farmer. This has probably influenced his decision to cultivate plantain and cassava on his 200-acre farm in Ijaye, Oyo State and a 50-acre farm in Ijebu, Ogun State.
Ettu’s venture into farming made him discover the appalling poverty level of farmers. He was inspired to do something to better the lives of people in the grassroots in his own little way.
So he got together with a number of like minds in 2013, at a historic meeting in Akure the capital of Ondo State and formed the Grassroots Forum, a socio-economic platform for the emancipation of the people in the grassroots.
In collaboration with people like Olajuwon, who is the National Co-ordinator of the Grassroots Forum, Pastor Olowookere, and Comrade Adeoti, the Grassroots Forum came into being.
Prince Ettu was mandated to convene the Lagos Chapter of the Grassroots Forum, which he has so far done very well. Speaking recently, he stated that: “We decided to sensitize the people in the grassroots, so that they can stop being deceived by the politicians. I was assigned to nurture the Grassroots Forum in Lagos.
“I can tell you that within one year, with the contributions of coordinators, we have mobilised more than 8,000 members across all 57 local government and LCDAs in Lagos. We hold regular meetings which we rotate around all the local governments. Our membership include artisans, tailors, farmers, traders, market people and even professionals in different areas of human endeavour. We welcome people that are very passionate about creating a better life for people in the grassroots across Nigeria.”
According to him, one of the objectives of the Grassroots Forum is to encourage more young people to go into farming since it is lucrative. He commended President Goodluck Jonathan for the enabling environment created for farmers through the Minister of Agriculture. This he says has encouraged more people like him to embrace farming as an occupation and it is paying off handsomely.
“We want grassroots people, especially farmers, to have a better life, so we have helped many of our members who are farmers, traders, fishermen, artisans etc, get micro credits to put food on their tables and take care of their families. We help to package credit facilities for farmers and also link them to growth enhancing schemes of the federal government for the agricultural sector. We have also helped lots of our members to access jobs in the Federal Government’s SURE-P employment scheme,” he added.
The convener of the Grassroots Forum in Lagos said he got his inspiration from the likes of Prince Buruji Kashamu whom he likened to the late MKO Abiola in terms of philanthropy. He says Kashamu has placed thousands on scholarships and empowered thousands with tricycles, taxis, tailoring equipment, mechanic tools , etc.
Presently, the Grassroots Forum is embarking on a moral re-armament advocacy for the youth due to the appalling moral laxity in the society.
With the enlisting of religious clerics the group hopes to reach out to the youth through various media to encourage them to shun crime, embrace peace, integrity and work towards their dreams.