NEWS UPDATES 03/03/2024
Residents Loot Govt Warehouse In Abuja
Abuja residents have looted a warehouse belonging to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Department of Agriculture.
The warehouse was raided by the residents on Sunday morning. They carted away foodstuffs and other items stored in the warehouse.
Earlier reports on social media had claimed that the warehouse belonged to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
However, a source in NEMA who preferred to be anonymous, confirmed to Channels Television that the warehouse does not belong to NEMA but to the FCT Agriculture Department.
On inquiry, the Public Relations Officer of the FCT Agric secretariat, Zakari Aliyu, confirmed to Channels Television in a text message that the looted warehouse belonged to them.
He, however, did not disclose further details on the looted warehouse.
Nigerians have been groaning over hardship and soaring prices of commodities occasioned by government policies, especially the removal of petrol subsidy and unification of the forex rate.
In some states, many Nigerians have taken to the streets in protest of unbearable hardship due to the high cost of commodities, especially food items.
On February 7, residents of Suleja in Niger State took to the street to register their displeasure over the high cost of living in the country.
The Suleja protest came after a similar protest in Minna, the state capital just two days earlier.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions such as “Leadership is all about improving the life of the masses,” and “Nigerians are suffering, stop the hardship now,” among others.
Days later, a similar protest broke out in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
Staged in the Mokola area of Ibadan, the state capital, placard-carrying youths in their droves chanted songs to drive home their points.
Some of the placards have inscriptions such as ‘End food hike and inflation’, ‘The poor are starving’, and ‘Tinubu, don’t forget your promises’, amongst others.
The President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government has acknowledged the hardship Nigerians are facing and has introduced several palliative measures and other actions to arrest the situation.
In one of his responses to the situation, President Tinubu ordered the National Security Adviser, (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu; the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun; and the Director General of the Department of State Service (DSS), Yusuf Bichi; to work with governors and go after those hoarding foodstuff.
The President at the time also ruled out the importation of food items, adding that he wouldn’t set up a price control board.
“What I will not do is to set a price control board. I will not also approve the importation of food,” the President said.
“We should be able to get ourselves out of the situation we found ourselves in because importation will allow rent seekers to perpetrate fraud and mismanagement at our collective expense. We would rather support farmers with schemes that will make them go to the farm and grow more food for everyone in the country.
“We must also look at the rapid but thoughtful implementation of our livestock development and management plans, including dairy farming and others,” the President stated.
The President had also ordered the release of grains to ease the rising cost of food items but many Nigerians continue to express their displeasure over the economic hardship in the country.
