Residents of Bauchi, Gombe and Dutse have decried the alleged stealing of the federal government’s 20-truck rice palliative donated to the states.

They also decried the hoarding and hijacking of palliatives by the government and ruling party officials.

The federal government has allocated 20 trucks of rice and other packages to the 36 states as part of palliative measures to cushion the rising cost of living in country.

The government’s palliative include food items, inputs, and cash grants to the vulnerable, as well as the introduction of compressed natural gas vehicles to check hikes in transport fares and ease the movement of goods and services.

A cross-section of Nigerians who spoke in separate interviews in Bauchi, Gombe and Dutse alleged diversion of the government’s palliative by the respective state governments.

In Dutse, the Jigawa capital, the residents accused political leaders of “diverting” palliative meant for vulnerable and poor families.

Muhammadu Hamza accused the state officials of being saddled with the responsibility of distributing the palliative only to their supporters.

“We did not received any item after symbolic distribution of the palliative by the government officials,” he said.

Musa Ali and Hajiya Maimuna also accused government officials of serious neglect in managing the palliative to cushion the hardship being experienced by the people.

“Our governor is a God-fearing man. We knew that the problem is from fraudulent officials seeking to enrich themselves at the detriment of the vulnerable and poor families,” Mr Hamza said.

Shuaibu Kafingana, the Jigawa State Social Protection Platform (JISOP) chairman, lauded President Bola Tinubu and Governor Umar Namadi for providing food assistance to 28,000 persons.

He also expressed dismay over the shortchanging of the vulnerable in the palliative distribution exercise. He advocated an open process to ensure transparency and equity in the state’s palliative distribution exercise.

“We want the palliative distribution to go beyond party supporters. The intervention by the federal and state governments is commendable. Each beneficiary received one bag of 25kg of rice, 12 pieces of pasta, one bag of 10kg of maize, sorghum or millet,” Mr Kafingana said.

In Bauchi, the delays in distributing the government’s rice have sent tongues wagging among desperate residents expecting the food palliative to assuage their sufferings.

Sani Muazu, a resident of Bauchi, said they had not received the federal government’s ice allocated to the state. He said the delays in the distribution of palliatives worsened the food crisis facing the vulnerable and poor households in the state.

Mr Mu’azu urged the state government to begin the distribution of the FG’s rice in earnest to cushion the rising cost of living. Corroborating Mu’azu, Garba Jinjiri, the Bauchi State Network of Civil Society Organisations (BASNEC) chairman, decried the non-engagement of civil society groups in the FG’s rice distribution committee.

Commenting, a senior official of the Bauchi State Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, who spoke under condition of anonymity, said the state was yet to receive its allocation of the FG’s rice. According to the official, apart from the FG’s intervention, the state government has been distributing palliatives received from agencies and other donors.

“The state government is working tirelessly to ensure that when the rice is received, it will be distributed to the vulnerable as soon as possible,” the official said.

Audu Alheri and Musa Ahmed, residents of Gombe metropolis, alleged that the bags of rice donated by the federal government had not been distributed to them.

“The federal government has tried to reduce the hardship by donating rice but the state government denied receiving it. The question is where did other states get the rice they are sharing to the people, and if the federal government gave them, why will Gombe be left out? It is either the state government is hoarding or it doesn’t want to share the rice,” she alleged.

Yusuf Ibrahim, chairman of the Gombe Network of Civil Society (GONET), said there were questions on transparency regarding palliative procurement and distribution at all levels.

Mr Ibrahim, however, commended the state government for distributing palliatives to vulnerable persons, groups, and organisations.

He further called for proactive measures to ensure that the process is transparent and accountable to the people.

Reacting, Ismaila Uba-Misilli, spokesman for the Gombe government, dismissed as “misleading” insinuations alleging diversion of the rice.

He said that apart from the rice, Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s administration distributed assorted food items to 420,000 vulnerable people in Gombe.

Mr Uba-Misili stressed that the state government was not hoarding the palliative. He added that during the Ramadan fast, the state government distributed food items to 420,000 beneficiaries, still supporting households across the state.

(NAN)