Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has flagged the distribution of palliatives to cushion the harsh realities of the removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government.
During his speech at the symbolic commencement event held at the Arcade ground of the Governor’s Office in Abeokuta, Governor Abiodun announced that a total of 300,000 bags, each containing 10kg of rice, would be distributed to 5,400 polling units spanning the three senatorial districts in the state.
“This is a federal government initiative under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that is being domesticated right here in Ogun State. Our desire in the first instance is to distribute about 300,000 bags of 10kg rice across our 5,400 polling units,” he said at the event.
“We have decided to use the polling units as a reference of distribution, not wards, because we realized that using wards won’t be equitable. You can imagine taking a ward in Sagamu, for example, like the Ogijo ward and compare it with a ward in Ikenne. If we use the ward as the yardstick for distributing the palliatives, it is very unfair and not equitable.”
Governor Abiodun also emphasized the implementation of additional short-term, medium-term, and long-term measures by the government to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal.
He directed the Central Working Committee responsible for palliative distribution to carry out their duties with the utmost responsibility, covering all twenty local government areas within the state.
The governor reiterated his trust in the distinguished individuals overseeing the palliative distribution, believing that they would ensure its effective, efficient, and transparent execution.