The Delta State government has said it had not received the 20 trucks of rice the Federal Government distributed to the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Information Commissioner Ifeanyi Osuoza announced this while speaking with The Nation yesterday in Asaba, the state capital.
In a text message, Osuoza said: “Sorry, we have not received any consignment from the Federal Government as at this moment. I shall revert to you when we receive same”.
The Federal Government, through its Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said it had released 20 trucks of 25 kilogramme rice to the 36 states and the FCT on Monday, 15 July.
According to the minister, each truck was to deliver 1,200 bags of the rice, expected to be further distributed among the most vulnerable persons and families in the states.
It could not be ascertained last night, whether the Federal Government had sent the commodity to the state or if something happened to the consignment on its way.
Also, Edo State Information and Orientation Commissioner Chris Nehikhare yesterday confirmed that the state had received trucks of rice from the Federal Government after its initial denial.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nehikhare had, on a national television programme, denied that the state government received trucks of rice from the Federal Government.
“We only received grains and garri from the Federal Government, not rice,” he had said on a live television programme.
Th]e Peoples Democratic Party-led state government’s denial prompted the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) to accuse it of being economical with the truth.
APC claimed that the bags of rice looted in Benin, the state capital, during the recent nationwide protest were part of the palliatives from the Federal Government but which were hoarded by the state government.
In the midst of the controversy, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Abubakar Momoh an indigene of Edo State – clarified that every state, including Edo, each got 20 trucks of rice.
Addressing reporters yesterday in Benin, Nehikhare capitulated and confirmed that the state government did receive trucks of rice from the Federal Government.
He said: “On the issue of the Federal Government giving us rice, I will tell you, few months ago, maybe early this year or late last year or mid this year, they brought some trucks of rice.
“It (the rice) was distributed according to the formula that it should be sent to IDP (internally displaced persons) camps, different people, and orphanage homes. You people should do the investigation.
“The Edo State government did not touch any of the trucks. They moved straight to the local governments and where they were designated to be given out.
“The Edo State government does not keep rice. We have spent N2.2 billion to feed our people. What can 20 trucks of rice do where we are close to seven million people in the state? How does that help?”
