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| Tinubu Palliative: |
Anxiety is growing as only a few states have received the 20 trucks of rice palliative allocated to each of the 36 states by the Federal Government, Sunday Vanguard reports.
A weekend survey revealed that no northern state, except Kano, had received the rice consignment. In the South-West, only Oyo reported the arrival of the trucks.
In the South-South, officials from Akwa-Ibom, Rivers, and Bayelsa States confirmed receiving the palliative, while others stated that the trucks had not yet arrived.
Delta State government reported that the rice had not been received as of Friday noon, while officials from Edo and Cross River States did not respond to inquiries.
Last Monday, the Federal Government announced the allocation of 740 trucks of rice to the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Under this arrangement, each state, including the FCT, is expected to receive 20 trucks containing 1,200 bags of 25kg rice each, to be distributed to the most vulnerable in society. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this during a briefing with State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Minister, accompanied by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, stated that the President had directed the Minister of Agriculture to ensure food availability for Nigerians.
He explained that the distribution of rice trucks aims to alleviate the country’s hardship, with state governors expected to distribute the rice to the most vulnerable.
Delta: No Rice Yet – Ahon, CPS
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Delta State, Sir Festus Ahon, confirmed to Sunday Vanguard that the state had not received its share of the palliative.
Bayelsa Commissioner Confirms Receipt of Rice
Bayelsa State Information Commissioner, Mrs. Ebiuwou Koku-Obiyai, confirmed the receipt of the rice in Yenagoa, the state capital. She stated, “Yes, the state has received the palliative. I just confirmed from the Chairman of SEMA that the state has received 20 truckloads of 25kg bags of rice. The governor will be informed. In Bayelsa State, we do not distribute palliative along party lines. Everybody is suffering, and Governor Diri insisted that everyone should benefit from such distributions.”
Chair of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Hon Walama Igrubia, also confirmed the delivery of the palliative.
Akwa Ibom Received 24,000 Bags
In Akwa Ibom State, Commissioner for Information Ini Ememobong acknowledged the receipt of 24,000 bags of 25kg rice from the Federal Government to mitigate the current food crisis. The state government added another 24,000 bags to increase the total to 48,000 bags, ensuring more families benefit from the intervention.
He stated, “Through this food intervention, the government will share 20 bags of rice each to 2,272 villages in the state. This is in addition to the over 100,000 families drawn from the social register, who have already received and will continue to receive free food items from the state government through the Bulk Purchase Agency.”
Ememobong emphasized that the food intervention aims to reduce extreme hunger and poverty, as stipulated by Sustainable Development Goal 1. He also highlighted the state’s back-to-farm initiative to boost local food production, with the governor declaring the first and third Fridays of the month as work-free farming days.
The Ministry of Agriculture has undertaken several strategic interventions, including distributing cassava cuttings, maize grains, pepper seedlings, and coconut seedlings to 135 public primary and secondary schools, and sharing 150,000 cocoa seedlings with cocoa farmers. Additionally, 40,000 oil palm seedlings were distributed to oil palm farmers, 80,000 pepper seedlings to vegetable farmers, four piglets and three weaners (goats) to 1,200 livestock farmers, 50-day-old chicks with six bags of feed to 700 poultry farmers, and bags of feed to 200 aquaculture farmers.
The AKCARES Scheme also provided livelihood grants of N150,000 to 1,560 beneficiaries, agricultural inputs (day-old chicks, juveniles, feed, etc.), and services to 900 farmers.
The distribution of the federal and state governments’ food intervention will be conducted at local government council headquarters, where respective council chairmen will ensure the safe transportation of 20 bags each to all gazetted villages. Distribution dates will be announced soon.
Fubara Sets Up LOC for Distribution in Rivers
In Rivers State, the latest palliative from the Federal Government arrived in Lagos on Wednesday. Governor Siminalayi Fubara revealed that a Local Organizing Committee (LOC), headed by the Caretaker Chairmen of each local government, has been established to distribute the food items to the most vulnerable people across the state.
The governor, through the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Tammy Wenike Danagogo, announced the joint flag-off of the Federal Government Grain Distribution with the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Port-Harcourt.
State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Joe Johnson, confirmed the receipt of the palliative, stating, “As a government, we are doing our best to cushion the effect of the hard times on our people. Last Easter, for instance, we distributed rice to the most vulnerable people. There are other measures put in place by the government to mitigate the hardship.”
Johnson assured that the distribution process would not be compromised by political interests.
Katsina: No Rice Truck Yet
In Katsina State, as of noon Friday, the Federal Government’s truck of rice had not yet arrived. Public Relations Officer of Katsina SEMA, Bello Mamman, stated that he had no information on the truck’s whereabouts or expected arrival time. Efforts to reach the DG, SEMA, Hajiya Binta Dagani, for further clarification were unsuccessful. Mamman advised checking back on Monday, as the DG SEMA was out of the state on an official assignment.
Plateau: Consignment Yet to Arrive
Officials in Plateau State reported that they had not yet received the 20 trucks of rice promised by the Federal Government. State Commissioner for Information and Communication, Musa Ashoms, confirmed in a telephone interview that the consignment had not arrived.
Borno SEMA: No Trucks Received Yet
The North East Zonal Coordinator of NEMA, Alhaji Sirajo Garba Maidugu, stated in an interview with Sunday Vanguard that his office had not received any correspondence regarding the delivery of the 20 trucks to the states, particularly Borno and Yobe. He said, “Sincerely, our office has not received any correspondence in that regard. We don’t know whether the disbursement will be carried out directly to the state governments or through NEMA, but the moment I get information, I will furnish you accordingly. But for now, we are yet to be in the picture.”
