Osun State Government and the State chapter of the All Progressives Congress on Saturday traded allegations over the disbursement of bags of rice received from the Federal Government as palliative to alleviate the effects of the fuel subsidy removal on the residents of the state.
The APC, in a statement by its chairman, Mr. Tajudeen Lawal, had challenged the state governor, Ademola Adeleke, to disclose the whereabouts of the 1,250 bags of rice reportedly sent by President Bola Tinubu to the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria for the last Christmas and New Year festivities.
The party said it had information that a consignment of 1,250 bags of rice meant for the Osun CAN, delivered to the state government, was misappropriated by the state officials.
The statement read in part, “We won’t back down as a party until the issue of the stolen rice belonging to the Osun CAN is resolved in favour of the rightful owners as we won’t on the previous 17,000 bags of 50kg rice and 8,000 bags of maize donated to Osun State by the Federal Government but which the same Adeleke diverted to create perception problems for the APC Federal Government.
“Why is it that it is only in Osun State in the southwest that the CAN was deprived of its rice meant for the festivities?”
But responding in another statement signed by the state Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the government dismissed the allegation that the state received bags of rice from the Federal Government for distribution to the state chapter of CAN.
Describing the report as false without any foundation in truth, Alimi said the “Federal Government has not sent any rice palliative to Osun since the batch sent last year which was shared to the public through a committee of public associations and groups.
“The committee that shared the last rice package had the CAN chairman and others as members and there is no way any consignment will reach the state without the committee being informed and engaged in the distribution.”
He therefore challenged APC members who spread the information to substantiate the allegation, cautioning broadcast organisations to desist from providing platforms for those marketing fake news.
He further called on members of the public to ignore the purveyors of untrue information, reiterating the commitment of the current administration to accountability and transparency in state governance.
