Governor Umaru Bago of Niger has approved two trucks of 50kg bags of rice for the state’s Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) chapter as palliatives to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.

Mr Bago announced this during the reception to celebrate the newly constructed office of the deputy governor, Yakubu Garba, in Minna.

He disclosed that the initial N110 million approved for NLC was for their logistics to monitor the distribution process of the palliatives across the 274 wards of the state.

“Labour, we have given you work to go round and supervise the palliatives’ distribution, but for the labour union, we have not given you palliatives.

“We only gave you logistics to go round and supervise distribution; now, as a government, we will give you two trucks of 50kg for distribution,” he said.

Mr Bago added that the money was for the NLC members to effectively monitor the distribution process to ensure the palliatives get to everyone.

The governor advised the union to shelve its two-day warning strike and congratulated the deputy governor on his new office.

In his remarks, Mr Garba appreciated the governor for a cordial working relationship and pledged to discharge his responsibility for the progress and development of the state.

(NAN)