APC Group Congratulates Ejidike On Federal Appointment, Hails PBAT
Ikemba Front, a major political support group within the All Progressives Congress (APC) has congratulated Chief Basil Ejidike, the Chairman of party in Anambra on his appointment as Chairman Governing Board, National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike.
Ejidike’’s appointment by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was announced on Thursday, April 10.
Mr Arinzechukwu Awogu, the National Coordinator of Ikemba Front in his message of felicitations said that the appointment came at a time when the APC was still basking in the euphoria of a successful primary election which produced Dr Nicholas Ukachukwu as its candidate for the Nov. 8 guber poll.
“It is an appointment that is well deserved, Sir Basil Ejidike has through dint of hard work and commitment to the party and Anambra State found the right rhythm to national stardom.
“His appointment is a morale booster for the APC family in Anambra, a family that had looked in bewilderment as appointments hitherto ment for its hard working members were cornered to members of the ruling party in Anambra,” he said.
Ikemba Front thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the appointment and for using the appointment to boost and rekindle the confidence of APC members in Anambra
He said the party in Anambra was happy that Mr President had started to recognise APC members in Anambra for appointments while assuring of the party’s unflinching support for the him.
Ejidike now chairs the Governing Board of National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike an institute which started on Jan. 1 1923 as a British colonial Provincial Experimental Farm, under the Colonial Nigeria Department of Agriculture with headquarters at Moor Plantation Ibadan.
Following Nigerian regionalisation of Government Departments in 1954, it came under the Eastern Region Ministry of Agriculture, supervised by the Director of Agriculture at Enugu.
In 1955, the School of Agriculture was established at the same location. The Provincial Experimental Farm or Research Station became known as the Eastern Nigeria Agricultural Research Station in 1956.
Both the research station and the school were amalgamated in 1965 and called Agricultural Research and Training Station (ARTS), Umudike.
On April 1, 1972, the then Federal Military government of Nigeria took over this station and renamed it Federal Agricultural Research and Training Station (FARTS), Umudike.
The Station was upgraded to a commodity Research Institute in 1975 by Agricultural Research Institutes Decree 33, 1973 and Research Institutes (Establishment etc) Order 1975, and renamed National Root Crops Research Institute.
The Institute came under the aegis of National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) by Decree No. 5 of January 1977.
In 1980, it was transferred to the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology. From 1986, the Institute came under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMANR).
In 1992, the Institute’s Federal College of Agriculture was directed to relocate to Ishiagu, Ebonyi State, and its premises were taken over by Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike.
In 2006, the Institute and its Federal College of Agriculture came under the supervision of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), Abuja; an agency under the FMANR.
