Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state has kicked off the distribution of food palliatives to 200,000 households in the state as part of effort to provide succour to the people in the face of harsh economic realities due to fuel subsidy removal.
Flagging off the distribution at the Oba Lamidi Adeyemi mini stadium Oyo to some households, Governor Makinde explained that all food items for distribution are locally procured at the various zones of the state to support farmers and stimulate the economy.
He noted that to allow for meaningful food distribution, the state government procures 37,000 bags of rice in addition to the 3,000 bags from the federal government, adding that each of the 200,000 beneficiary household would get a package containing 10kg rice, 5kg beans, 5kg garri, 5kg cassava flour and a bottle of groundnut oil.
The Governor assured that the 5 billion naira palliative financial support from the federal government fund would be judiciously put to use in the interest of the people.
Makinde said: “Some people have been going round on radio and social media asking the whereabouts of the 3,000 bags of rice given to Oyo State by the federal government.
“Others are saying the federal government gave us N5 billion and we have embezzled it. Some say there is trust deficit between the government and the people. Is it so in Oyo State? Don’t you love this administration?
“This administration will not deceive you, we will tell you exactly the way things are.
“We were one of the first states to acknowledge that the federal government gave us 3,000 bags of rice.
“I stated it in my newsletter of the 10th of August that we planned to distribute this food relief package to 200,000 households.
“If we distributed the 3,000 bags we received from the federal government to 200,000 households, probably each person would get a cup of rice.
“If we had rushed out to make naysayers happy, they will still be the first to rush to social media to put out videos of how small the package is. So we took our time to plan because both in the short and long time, we are thinking about securing our economy.
“We bought an additional 37,000 bags of rice making a total of 40 bad of rice. That is why each of the 200,000 poorest households will be getting 10kg of rice. We also procured for each household 5k bag of beans, garri, elubo and a bottle of oil.”
