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Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Benue State Government on Wednesday explained how Wurukum Market Traders Association’s Chairman, Abdullahi Yusuf, diverted COVID-19 palliatives meant for his members for sale in Kano State.
Recall that a few weeks ago, the Kano State Police Command recovered in Kano, 1,958 cartons of noodles that were part of the Benue palliatives donated by CACOVID to Benue state.
Immediately the news went round, Governor Samuel Ortom set up a committee to probe how the Benue palliatives got to Kano.
Addressing a joint press briefing on Wednesday afternoon, Commissioner for Information, Mrs. Ngunen Adingi and Security Adviser to the Governor, Col. Paul Hemba (rtd) disclosed that preliminary investigation showed that the chairman of Wurukum market in Makurdi who hails from Kano state, Abdullah Yusuf diverted the goods to Kano.
Speaking to newsmen after the State Executive Council meeting, Adingi and Hemba explained that the State action committee on COVID-19 had distributed all the palliatives out of which the traders’ association also got some.
They explained further that the association’s Chairman had recieved the palliatives on behalf of his members with a promise to distribute to them only for him to thereafter divert them to Kano, his home state for sale.
“Rather than disturbing the items to his members as instructed, Yusuf who is the Chairman of the Traders Association diverted them to Kano.
Addingi noted that the action committee on COVID-19 decided to distribute part of the Benue palliatives to market traders because they were also affected by the COVID-19 lockdown and we’re hardly able to open their shops during that period.
“The matter is being investigated and the chairman has been arrested”, the Information Commissioner disclosed.
