The State Government of Osun has admitted that some of the bags of rice distributed to its citizens to serve as palliatives for the total lockdown imposed on the state for COVID-19 might have not met the expected quality, stressing it has commenced investigation into the source of the said rice.
On Thursday, some residents of the state of Osun who spoke to OSUN DEFENDER at polling units, venue of the distribution alleged that the the quality and quantity of the rice distributed by the state government was substandard and appalling.
Confirming the development on Saturday, the government in a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Mrs Funke Egbemode, noted that investigations have commenced into claims that a few bags of rice out of the over 6000 bags distributed as palliatives to cushion the effect of the lockdown on people of the State, are adulterated.
Egbemode said the government had received complaints that some of the distributed bags of rice may not have met the expected quality.
She noted that the State government was pained by the development and had immediately begun investigation to establish the source of the affected few bags.
She said: “The State of Osun, under the leadership of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, is particularly pained by this development, considering the fact that it has never compromised quality in its provision of economic stimulus for the people of Osun in spite of its limited resources.
“The State Government of Osun, under the leadership of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, is a very responsible and responsive government that places premium on the well-being of its people and would not do anything to jeopardize its citizens’ health.
“Upon receipt of the complaints, the State Government has immediately begun investigations to establish the source of the few bags that appear not to have met the quality expected.”
The Commissioner disclosed that as part of the investigation, the State government had invited all suppliers and vendors from whom the relief materials were purchased, for questioning in order to dentify the source of the problem.
“We assure our citizens that upon unraveling what went wrong , the State Government will take necessary punitive measures against the erring Supplier(s) or Vendor(s), including de-listing such vendor from the Government’s directory and even proclaiming a disclaimer to that effect,” she added.
Egbemode also revealed that all the over 6000 bags of rice were purchased from dealers in Osun, which she said was part of government’s efforts to empower its people and also stimulate the local economy.
“If the over 6,020 bags were gotten from Lagos or Abuja, we would have denied our market traders the opportunity to supply and to compensate them for the lockdown,” she added.
The Commissioner restated the commitment of the State government toward protecting its citizens from potential and actual threats, stressing that the “development would not deter the State from dedicatedly seeking to improve the welfare of the people of Osun, especially the vulnerable group, during the time of the State-wide lockdown.”
