Hunger protest: Tinubu’s minister levels serious allegation against Nigerian governor over FG’s rice

• Concerns rises over the actions of some hunger protesters who were reportedly looting the federal government's agricultural stores in some states
• Reacting to the development, the minister for Niger Delta Development, Abubakar Momoh, accuses Governor Godwin Obaseki of misappropriating federal food aid, following protests and looting of rice warehouses in Edo state
• Obaseki's aide, Crusoe Osagie reacted to the claim and shared further details on the state government’s feeding programme

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements

The minister for Niger Delta Development, Abubakar Momoh, has accused Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State of re-bagging food items from the federal government to give the impression that the state government sponsored such relief materials for the people of the state.

Abubakar Momoh and Governor Obaseki trade words over looted rice in Edo state. Photo credit: Abubakar Momoh, Governor Godwin Obaseki
Source: Facebook

Momoh, who spoke in an interview with Channels TV, was reacting to claims that the federal government failed to deliver on its promise to distribute 20 trucks of rice to the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to cushion the effects of food inflation in the country.

The minister, an indigene of Edo State, said he watched on television how protesters broke into some warehouses and looted bags of rice which some state governors refused to share to the masses.

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Although he did not mention the affected states, protesters recently looted bags of rice in a warehouse in Edo.

He expressed anger that Obaseki, while addressing protesters recently, reportedly said he would take their message to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Daily Trust reported.

He said:

“I think any governor that says that he has not received 20 trucks of rice is not being fair.“In the case of Edo State that you just mentioned, look at what happened, you see on social media, and television how people went into warehouses, broke into warehouses and brought out these goods.“The Edo governor, for instance, got his own and I can say in clarity that there are some state governors who of course engineered this process. Even the governor of Edo State you have just mentioned, recently when the protest started, he was the one that organised people at King Square and addressed them and at the end of the day, what did he say? He said I want to carry your message to the federal government in Abuja.“We expect such a governor to address the problems in Edo State. How many roads has he been able to tar? How many erosions problems has he been able to solve? But rather what he does is that if the government brings relief like this, he repacks them and puts his name. We saw what happened during COVID-19 and that is something that is happening today.”

Reacting, the special adviser to the Edo state governor on media, Crusoe Osagie, in statement berated Momoh for “attempting to mislead the public” on the state government’s feeding programme.

Nigeria's hardship protests: Shehu Sani voiced concerns

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Shehu Sani has pleaded with citizens to call off the ongoing nationwide protest against economic hardship.

Legit.ng reports that Sani emphasised that civil unrest was not a viable solution and would only worsen northern Nigeria’s fragile condition.

The former federal lawmaker observed with concern how the protest that commenced peacefully on Thursday, August 1, turned violent, resulting in the loss of lives and property.

Source: Legit.ng