The Benue State Government on Wednesday disclosed how a portion of the palliatives meant for the state was diverted to Kano by market chief.
In a joint press briefing by the Commissioner for Information, Mrs Ngunen Adingi ; and Special Adviser to the Governor, Col. Paul Hemba (retd.), the government said the Chairman of Wurukum Market in Makurdi, who hails from Kano State, Abdullah Yusuf, diverted the goods to Kano.
The police in Kano State had, few weeks ago during the lockdown occasioned by COVID-19, recovered 1,958 cartons of noodles suspected to have been diverted from Benue State to Kano.
The Commissioner of Police in Kano, Habu Sani, had said that some people were arrested between July 23 and September 8.
Addressing journalists in Makurdi after the State Executive Council meeting, Adingi and Hemba said the state action committee on COVID-19 had distributed some palliatives to traders at Wurukum market through its chairman who is from Kano.
“The action committee on COVID-19 decided to distribute palliative to market traders who were also affected from not being able to open their shops.
“The market association was invited and the palliatives were shared. However, we heard that chairman of the market, Yusuf, collected the palliative on behalf of the traders and instead of distributing to traders, he felt they should sell them and that is how the palliative got to Kano.
“The matter is being investigated and the chairman has been arrested,” the Information commissioner said.
