BusinessDay 04 Mar 2018
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Sunday <strong>04</strong> <strong>Mar</strong>ch <strong>2018</strong> C002D5556<br />
BDSUNDAY<br />
9<br />
f materials in Edo<br />
NewsFeature<br />
Solomon Folorusho, coordinator of<br />
Ohogua IDPs camp<br />
Dan Orbih. Edo state<br />
chairman of PDP<br />
Ogbomerhe in Edo Central and<br />
Edo North fall into? Also, when<br />
the state government discovered<br />
that the rice and vegetable<br />
oil were bad or expired, did it<br />
inform the authorities of the<br />
Nigerian Customs Service and<br />
National Logistic Committee? If<br />
all these questions were asked<br />
by the state government, what<br />
were the responses?<br />
It should be noted that during<br />
the distribution of the relief materials<br />
by Edo State government<br />
on December 24, 2017, credit<br />
was never given to the Federal<br />
Government as the donor of the<br />
relief items. The news story<br />
written by Crusoe Osagie on<br />
the distribution was captioned<br />
‘Yuletide: Edo Government Celebrates<br />
with IDPs, Orphans,<br />
donates food items, footwear’.<br />
The story said the Edo State<br />
government had donated food<br />
items and footwear worth millions<br />
of naira to IIDPs in Ohogua,<br />
Ovia North-East LGA of the state<br />
as well as food items to selected<br />
orphanages across Benin metropolis.<br />
It quoted Yakubu Gowon,<br />
special adviser to the governor<br />
on special duties, who presented<br />
the items to the IDPs<br />
in their camp, as saying, “The<br />
donation is to show the state<br />
governor’s love for his people<br />
and that he is committed to<br />
making them happy. This is to<br />
show that Edo government<br />
loves every citizen, irrespective<br />
of their social status. We<br />
know this is the season to show<br />
love. The governor says if he<br />
eats a spoonful of rice, people<br />
in the camp should eat two. And<br />
if he wears shoes, people here<br />
should also do same.”<br />
It also quoted Magdalene<br />
Ohenhen, commissioner for<br />
women affairs and social development,<br />
to have said the state<br />
government was committed to<br />
taking care of the IDPs, assuring<br />
that the donation of relief materials<br />
by the Edo State government<br />
would be done on a continuous<br />
basis.<br />
We were shortchanged – IDPs<br />
When contacted, the coordinator<br />
of Christian International<br />
Christian Centres for Mission,<br />
operator of the IDPs camp, declined<br />
comments. But a reliable<br />
source close to the camp, who<br />
also raised eyebrows on the<br />
alleged diversion of the relief<br />
materials, noted that they were<br />
deprived of what the Federal<br />
Government gave them.<br />
The source, who pleaded anonymity,<br />
said security operatives,<br />
civil defence among others witnessed<br />
the donation of the relief<br />
materials to the camp.<br />
“Security operatives were at<br />
the camp to witness the distribution<br />
of the items to the IDP camp.<br />
Even when government officials<br />
were we trying to use EBS crew<br />
to suppress information, the<br />
security agencies told them<br />
that they should ensure that the<br />
media captured all the activities<br />
for public consumption. That<br />
almost caused problem between<br />
the security officials and those of<br />
government. The disagreement<br />
almost resulted to a brawl but<br />
the quick intervention of some<br />
persons saved the situation. It<br />
was very terrible.<br />
“Even in denying the alleged<br />
diversion of the relief materials,<br />
the government shot itself in the<br />
foot. They were written a letter<br />
since November, you were told<br />
to carry something straight to<br />
IDPs, you took these things and<br />
never told the IDPs and kept<br />
them from November till on<br />
February 8, <strong>2018</strong> when the giver<br />
now said they are coming to<br />
hand over. That is when you now<br />
rushed down 2,101 bags.<br />
“Also, you said you judiciously<br />
shared it with orphanages in Edo<br />
State. Was it meant for orphanages<br />
in Edo State or the IDPs?<br />
They have shot themselves. And<br />
they equally said the rest got bad.<br />
If they got bad, did you inform the<br />
Nigerian Customs Service that<br />
the rice they gave you got bad?<br />
So these are the questions.<br />
“In an online news medium, it<br />
was quoted that an anonymous<br />
government official has told<br />
them that they shared it for APC<br />
politicians and even the one they<br />
said they gave us was the one<br />
kept for the next election,” said<br />
the source.<br />
It was also said that since Governor<br />
Obaseki came into office<br />
as governor of the state, the<br />
authorities of the IDPs camp<br />
have written several letters to<br />
him highlighting their needs but<br />
he had never replied them.<br />
Another source, who also<br />
spoke on the rice issue, said in<br />
spite of the shortfall in the distribution<br />
of the relief materials to<br />
the IDPs, the items were yet to<br />
get to them.<br />
“As I speak to you now, we<br />
are yet to officially take over the<br />
bags of rice. They (government<br />
officials) came on February 8,<br />
<strong>2018</strong> in the night and dumped<br />
the bags of rice in our warehouse<br />
without properly handling them<br />
over to us. That is the reason we<br />
have not touched it because we<br />
have not been asked to.<br />
“We do not want to be dragged<br />
into the controversy, but all we<br />
are saying is that they should<br />
give us what was approved for<br />
us without playing politics with<br />
it. If our pastor was to be around,<br />
maybe he would have allowed<br />
you to see the items. About 100<br />
bags of rice have already gone<br />
bad and they separated them<br />
from the good ones which they<br />
kept inside the store while the<br />
bad ones are kept outside.<br />
“From the documents we received<br />
from the Nigerian Customs<br />
Service, a total of 6,822<br />
bags of rice were approved for<br />
us at the camp but they have only<br />
brought 2,101 and because they<br />
have not officially handed us the<br />
material, we cannot ask about<br />
the whereabouts of the over<br />
4,000 bags remaining.<br />
“Again, the documents clearly<br />
stated that there are other items<br />
such as 76 cartons of vegetable<br />
oil, 100 sacks of used shoes and<br />
another 20 sacks of used shoes.<br />
We cannot really say much about<br />
the issue because we are afraid<br />
to be caught in crossfire because<br />
we need the goodwill of all for<br />
the camp to survive. The children<br />
are much and we usually<br />
cook between eight and 10 bags<br />
of rice for a meal for the over<br />
1,500 inmates. So, we need the<br />
government to survive. The Edo<br />
State government has been very<br />
helpful and it is our hope to keep<br />
the good and cordial relationship<br />
going,” the source said.<br />
Customs reacts<br />
When contacted, Joseph Attah,<br />
image maker of NCS, said<br />
Governor Obaseki formally<br />
informed and appreciated the<br />
Comptroller-General of Customs<br />
of the receipt of the items<br />
and the subsequent distribution.<br />
Attah also added that following<br />
the complaints of shortchanging<br />
the IDPs camp of the<br />
items, the National Logistics<br />
Committee has concluded plans<br />
to send another batch of items<br />
to the camp and that the items<br />
would be sent to the camp soon.<br />
On the alleged spoilt rice and<br />
expired vegetable oil, Attah<br />
said the National Agency for<br />
Food and Drug Administration<br />
and Control (NAFDAC) was<br />
a member of the National Logistics<br />
Committee (NLC) that<br />
was saddled with the responsibility<br />
of distributing relief<br />
materials to IDPs in the North-<br />
East and had the responsibility<br />
to ascertain the suitability of<br />
products for consumption,<br />
adding that there was no way<br />
the agency could allow the allocation<br />
of spoilt and expired<br />
rice and vegetable oil.<br />
He explained that the state<br />
government transported the<br />
materials to the state and stored<br />
them in its warehouse, saying he<br />
could not say whether the materials<br />
got spoilt in the warehouse<br />
or not. He queried why the state<br />
government would accept the<br />
materials in the first place if they<br />
had got spoilt before they were<br />
transported to the state.<br />
Following, the weight of the<br />
PDP’s allegations, Edo State<br />
government mandated the commissioner,<br />
Edo State police command,<br />
Johnson Babatunde Kokumo,<br />
to investigate the alleged<br />
diversion of rice.<br />
It was, however, learnt that if<br />
the police were thorough and<br />
not biased in their investigation,<br />
some senior government<br />
officials may be indicted as they<br />
were involved in the distribution<br />
of rice to political allies and<br />
cronies during the last yuletide.<br />
Meanwhile, analysts are patiently<br />
waiting to see how the<br />
raging verbal war between PDP<br />
and APC-led government over<br />
alleged diversion of relief materials<br />
meant for IDPs will end.