The federal government of Nigeria on Sunday moved 120 trucks of assorted food to Kano state, being the second state with the highest number of coronavirus confirmed cases in Nigeria.
Emerald News reports that Bashir Ahmad, new media aide to President Muhammadu Buhari, made the disclosure in a tweet on Sunday evening, May 17, 2020.
Ahmad said the 120 trucks were part of palliative measures to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic in Kano state, one of the most populous states in the country.
The tweet reads thus: “The Federal Government has handed over 120 trucks of assorted foodstuff to the Kano State Government; palliatives to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic in the state.”
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Emerald News understands that the Kano state governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, had earlier requested for N15billion from President Buhari following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the state.
But President Buhari, rather than granting him his request, promised sending equipment and NCDC officials to aid the state government in the fight against the coronavirus.
Not less than 700 people had reportedly died in the state with some people tracing the massive death to the coronavirus while others attributed the death to other strange unknown ailments.
Kano state is the only state in the country to have received such great palliative support from the federal government of Nigeria. Although the federal government had earlier sent N10billion to Lagos state and N5billion to NCDC, no state has received such palliatives from the federal government.
There are insinuations that the federal government is more favourably disposed to the Northern states than states in the south, especially South South and South Eastern states of the country.
Rivers state government had cried to the federal government for aid, the government has not responded, though the COVID-19 patients in Rivers state are not much compared to Kano state.
One Engr. Boma Kalama, who reacted to the tweet of Ahmad, expressed unhappiness with the massive presentation to Kano while other states have not received any.
He said: “I guess it’s only Kano state that is in Nigeria, right? Or Kano is the only state suffering the pandemic. God will punish all of you politicizing this Corona Virus.”
Although a few trucks of rice was reportedly moved to some states, especially south west states, a few weeks ago, reports say the rice in the trucks were not fit for eating as they had been destroyed by insects. They were said to have been taken from the trucks of rice seized by custom over a year ago.
