Crackdown On Charcoal/ Firewood: Hardship Bites Harder In Jalingo

 

·        Families Can't Cook, 200 Local Restaurants Close Business

 

The ongoinging crackdown on charcoal and firewood trade in Jalingo has  sparked widespread hardship, pushing many families and local businesses to the brink.

 

 As the cost of charcoal skyrockets, families are struggling to cook meals, and around 200 local restaurants have been forced to close their doors.

 

The initiative, led by the Taraba State Special Task Force Committee on Environmental Protection, aims to combat deforestation. However, local residents and business owners argue that this crackdown is only exacerbating their economic struggles. With the prices of gas and fuel soaring, many households find themselves without affordable cooking options.

 

Business analyst Charles Yakubu expressed frustration over the situation, stating that local food vendors are grappling with the economic fallout. "About 200 roadside food sellers and those who roast fish and meat have closed down because they cannot afford charcoal or firewood. The taskforce seizing charcoal on rural roads and auctioning it in the city breeds corruption—it's like stealing from the poor to sell to the rich. The government needs to provide cheaper alternatives for cooking," he urged.

 

On his part former lawmaker and prominent agropreneur Tanko Bobbo  said life in Jalingo is becoming increasingly unbearable, as many households cannot afford the rising costs of cooking fuel. 

 "These trends will continue persistently ,if Taraba state government continues with policies that hurts small businesses. With this clampdown on the use of charcoals and firewood, many small businesses are gone forever.

 

This is another factor blocking the inflow of incomes in the state capital,infact life in the state capital is becoming unbearable , many households can't afford gas cylinder talkless of refilling the gas. Many families can't cook, if at all they have what to cook," Bobbo said in a viral post on social media

 

"We can't even afford a gas cylinder, let alone refilling it. Many families are left without a way to cook," lamented Salisu Yerima, a local resident. He criticized the taskforce's approach, stating, "If they're exporting charcoal to Abuja, they should block those routes, but right now they're just inflicting pain on us. What alternatives has the government provided for cooking? This is an agrarian state, and many people live below the poverty line. How can they afford gas?"

 

 

 Chairman of Taraba State Special Task Force Committee on Environmental Protection, Public Safety, and Prohibition of Deforestation  Brig General Jeremiah Faransa (Rtd)  said the fear of desert encroachment and other environmental degradation, is behind the current effort to curb tree burning for charcoal.

 

 

Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja, Faransa noted that the government is aware of the hardship but wants to control the illegal carting away of economic trees. He noted that a cartel is involved in the illegal burning of trees, with the state immensely losing to the nefarious activities. 

 

He said charcoal has become an export product from Taraba state, stressing that the activities of the loggers must be checked.

 

According to Faransa, the state has a duty to protect the land from illegal cutting of trees. He said, going forward, those cutting trees must also plant more.

 

He noted further that the current burning of trees for charcoal in Taraba state only benefits the cartel reselling the product outside the state.

 

He said, "the charcoal is sold in Jalingo for 4,500 naira but resold at 12, 000 naira in Abuja. The cartel is the one benefitting."

Meanwhile, Faransa noted that the state government is looking for ways to alleviate the suffering of the people through innovative means beyond charcoal.