Niger State government has explained that it was still awaiting the last batch of CA-COVID palliatives before the distribution to the people of the state.
The State Commissioner of information and strategies, Alhaji Sani Idris stated this on Wednesday in his office in Minna during an interaction with the newsmen.
Idris said clarification has become imperative following the ongoing development in the country whereby protesters were graduating from #EndSARS protest to the looting of palliatives and other materials from governments warehouses and elsewhere across the country.
He said, “we in Niger State, we have three different categories of Palliative, one from the state own palliative purchased during the lockdown, which had since been distributed, after that, we have palliative from the federal ministry of humanitarians, that too was distributed within 42 hours.”
The only challenge according to him was the palliative from a non-governmental organisation called Coalition Against Coronarirus (CA-COVID) which he said came with a strong directive that, it was meant for ‘poorest of the poor’, the downtrodden, adding that all the materials must arrive in the state before distributions will commence.
He noted that such directives were the reason for the delay in the disbursement of the CA-COVID palliatives in the state.
Hon. Idris who promised his unflinching support to the new leadership of the Correspondents Chapel in Niger State under the umbrella body of the State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists ( NUJ).
He thereby called on journalists in the state to educate people on the reason why the distribution of the palliative from CA-COVID was delayed in the state.
Sani Idris, however, lamented that “when the CA-COVID Parliatives came we started distributing it to Bosso and Chanchaga Local Governments Areas of the state”, pointing out that along the line an order came from the CA-COVID people that government cannot distribute it until all the materials were available.
He further explained that “weeks back we got a hint that the items are going to expire. I called the coordinator of CA-COVID myself and he still pleaded we should give them more time to complete the items before distributing it , that they were disappointed by the contractor supplying them.”
“With the mood of the country and what is happening in other states now, it is obvious that two sets of people are left with a critical job now, which is journalists and the security agencies.”
He appealed to journalists in the state to continue to support the present administration in maintaining the current peaceful coexistence in the state.
“I must confess that the relationship between the state ministry of information and strategy, and the correspondents chapel of Nigerian Union of journalists had been cordial hence the need to maintain the tempo.”
Speaking earlier, Chairman of the Correspondents Chapel of Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Niger State Council Alhaji Mustapha Binna, expressed appreciation to the Commissioner for his concern and support over the demise of a member of the Chapel, late Elder Akinade Oluwarotimi Alofetekun of the Guardian newspapers.
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