*The Osun State 21-man Food and Relief Committee urges citizens and residents of the state to trust the government, saying the current administration is a responsible government that prioritises the welfare of the people

Emmanuel Akosile | ConsumerConnect

Despite earlier suggestions that the Osun State Government hitherto hoarded the COVID-19 relief items meant for the citizens in the state, the Private Sector Coalition Against COVID-19 (CA-COVID) informed the state government that the delay in delivering the palliatives was due to procurement challenges it has faced.

Sources disclosed CA-COVID in a letter to the government stated that it had secured the full consignment of the rice component of the food relief items, and is ready to deliver it to the state.

Osayi Alile, Co-Administrator of the coalition, in the letter said: “In continuation of our efforts to conclude the delivery of CA-COVID food relief items to Osun State, you will be pleased to be informed that we have now secured the full consignment of the rice component of the food relief items designated for the good people of Osun State that was previously unavailable due to the procurement challenges faced during the earlier nationwide lockdown.”

The Osun State 21-man Food and Relief Committee, in its response, urged citizens and residents to trust the government, describing the current administration as a responsible government that prioritises the welfare of citizens.

Chief Adebayo Jimoh, Secretary to the 21-man Food and Relief Committee, said contrary to insinuations that the state government had hoarded relief items meant for its citizens, “the letter that was recently received by the state government, signed by Osayi Alile, a co-administrator of CA-COVID, by which they more or less apologised for the delay in delivering approximately 13 trucks of rice having 40,332 units of 10kg bags, to Osun State.

“This letter that was sent to the state confirmed that Osun State Government had no intention to punish its citizens, as some people had insinuated.”

This letter confirmed our earlier position that there was no hoarding of materials by the government. The donors were not ready then, but they are ready now, and their letter confirms this.

Jimoh stated that “the 21-man Food and Relief Committee, comprising eminent sons and daughters of the state, had through voluntary donations of its members, raised millions of Naira to provide food and non-food items for citizens between May and July. “This is different from the ones undertaken by the state government and the governor’s wife at different times.

“If these had been done at different levels, it shows the depth of commitment of the government and the committee it had set up for that purpose.”

The Secretary to the Food and Relief Committee added: “We therefore urge citizens to be calm and believe in their leaders. What happened with CA-COVID was an unfortunate incident, but the government has been vindicated by their letter.

“It is now left to our people to trust the government, which by several indications is a responsible one and one that has the interest of the citizens at heart.”

It is recalled that during the attack on a warehouse in Ede, the Osun State Government had announced that the food items that were looted were donations from CA-COVID, which the government had no authority to distribute because the CA-COVID office in Abuja was yet to launch the food relief programme in the state, because the rice component of the donated items had not been delivered at the time.