By Priscilla Campbell,
Minna
Chanchaga Local Government of Niger State has launched investigation into the diversion of some food items meant for palliatives to Limawa community in Minna, the state capital.
The missing palliatives from the whole quantity initially presented to the ward to be shared to the people, it was gathered include 13 bags of rice, 14 bags of millet and 15 bags of maize and many cartons of spagethetti.
To unmask those behind the diversion of the items, the council has constituted a Security Committee saddled with the task.
The committee’s main terms of reference is to find out under what law a member of the Covid-19 Task Force operated to dish out part of the palliatives to members of the Distribution Committee.
Aside the diverted items, findings showed that each of the nine members of the Distribution Committee of the palliatives collected a bag of rice.
The bubble busted, however, when, the vice chairman of the council that is also from the ward saw some of the items in the market displayed for sale with the name of the council written on the bags.
The vice chairman was said to have informed the Councils’ chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim A. Bosso, who demanded for full investigation into the issue and consequently, reported the matter to the state Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, and the state chairman of the Covid-19 Task Force, Alhaji Ahmed Matane.
It was initially alleged that a member of the Covid-19 task force was involved in the disappearance of the food stuff.
Confirming the diversion, the chairman of the Chanchaga Local Government Area, Alhaji Bosso, said that the committee had been set up to look into the issue and the report would be submitted on Wednesday.
It would be recalled that the state government gave the ward special palliatives to Limawa, when a Coronavirus positive case was confirmed as a result of which the area was isolated.