The Department of State Security Services (DSS) has arrested Governor Dikko Radda’s Special Adviser on Infrastructure, Alhaji Nasir Lawal, along with several state government officials and traders involved in the diversion of the federal government’s rice palliative intended for vulnerable individuals in Katsina State.
Earlier, DSS officials impounded 2,000 bags of rice stored at the Central Market in Katsina.
The consignment was traced to the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Alhaji Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, while other officials are being interrogated by the DSS regarding the source of an additional 800 bags.
The rice was impounded following a tip-off from concerned citizens who had observed suspicious movements of trucks unloading bags of grain during the early hours of the morning.
A distribution list provided to newsmen by a reliable source indicates that the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Alhaji Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, was allocated 1,200 bags for distribution to those in need.
Meanwhile, the Principal Private Secretary of Governor Dikko Radda explained that the minister had entrusted the bags to his aides, who stored them in a warehouse “for safekeeping.”
Similarly, the Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah wa Iqamatus Sunnah (JIBWIS) received 6,000 bags on behalf of its members, which have also not been distributed to the intended beneficiaries.
When contacted, the public relations officer of the group stated he was unaware of the allocation but referred newsmen to other officials of the organization for clarification.
CSOs, residents, and others express concern over the scandal, delay, etc.
Civil society organizations, residents, and others have expressed concern over the scandal and the delays in food assistance distribution.
In a press conference in Katsina, the State Chairman of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations, Abdur Rahman Abdullahi, described the scandal surrounding the distribution of the rice palliatives as alarming.
“It is extremely unfortunate and concerning that officials tasked with distributing the federal government’s food assistance to less privileged individuals would receive the 20 trucks meant for Katsina State yet refuse to distribute them.
“It is even more disheartening that some officials have already taken thousands of bags of rice to the market—rice that is meant for distribution to indigent and vulnerable people amidst the hunger and poverty plaguing the country.
“I commend the DSS for their diligent work in exposing and investigating the officials involved in diverting food assistance.
“However, the Katsina State government should also establish a committee to investigate the alleged diversion of some of the trucks of rice intended for distribution to less privileged people in Katsina State,” Abdullahi said.
Meanwhile, Governor Radda’s Special Adviser on Infrastructure, along with several other officials responsible for the distribution of the twenty trucks of rice meant for the state, are being interrogated by DSS officials over allegations of diversion and hoarding.
It is worth recalling that the federal government announced a fortnight ago that it had released twenty trucks of rice to each state of the federation to mitigate the impact of rising food prices in the country.
The bags of rice bear the label ‘Federal Government of Nigeria Food Security Programme,’ which is typically used to prevent the illegal sale or hoarding of grains meant for distribution to those in need.
The twenty trucks of rice for each state were handed over to state governments for onward distribution to less privileged individuals amid the severe poverty and inflation that have made food and other essentials unaffordable for ordinary Nigerians.
