Akwa Ibom State governor, Umo Eno, has expressed concern over the prevailing hunger and starvation occasioned by the current food crisis in the state.
He assured the people of the state government’s intervention in their plight and launched the Food Subsidy Initiative (SFI) for the “very poor”.
To cushion the effects of food crisis, especially amongst the very poor, the governor directed the proper review of the state’s social register (SR) to ensure the scheme is not hijacked by politicians and friends of government.
Outlining modalities for the implementation of the state’s Food Subsidy Initiative (SFI), he tasked the committee to ensure that the efforts at ameliorating the harsh economic realities are not thwarted by middlemen.
The governor said the social register will serve as a document for the implementation of the bulk purchase intervention, assuring everyone that “activities of middlemen will be checked to enable the poorest of the poor to benefit maximally from the programme.”
Governor Eno declared this while addressing the congregation at All Nations Christian Ministry International (ANCMI), where he worshipped alongside his wife, Patience, and other top functionaries of government during the First Sunday service for the month of March.
Towards a seamless process, the governor explained that “registered vendors will set up redemption centres, while government will issue targeted citizens with food vouchers, which will allow for discounted purchases and to redeem its worth at the approved redemption centres.”
“We want this thing to get to the real people. If this thing is not properly managed, the people would buy it, hoard and resell it at a higher price again to the masses. We know that as we are planning, some people are also planning how they will make money out of it.
So that is the problem and reason why many government programmes don’t succeed some times.
“One of the things we believe we can do, is to use the social register. So if you don’t have your name in the social register in your place, please go and do it. What we may likely introduce, is a food voucher, and we are going to have redemption centres all across this state, all across the market.
So, when you get the food voucher, you now take it to the redemption centres where you will get the foodstuff. Those managing the centres will bring the vouchers back to us and then get their balance with some logistics and profit,” the governor stressed.
He, therefore, warned mischief makers, to desist from attempting to thwart government’s good intention to stabilize the cost of staple food in the state, saying that, anyone caught, would face the full weight of the law.
