After peaceful protests against police and violence that degenerated into riots and vandalism last week after a bloody breakdown, we are now witnessing numerous looting of food aid reserves, principally intended for families of vulnerable people affected by the coronavirus crisis. never distributed by the authorities.
as reported from Abuja, Liza Fabbian
Early Monday morning, the people of Gwagwalada on the outskirts of the federal capital Abuja rushed to a huge reserve belonging to CaCovid, a private fund to fight Covid-19, which funds a food bank.
A long procession of buzzing motorcycles, cars loaded to the brim and busy pedestrians now ascend the long dusty road to the horizon. Some hold packets of noodles or rice in their hands, large bags of sugar where we can read “CACOVID / DO NOT SELL” in red letters.
Sheds searched across the country
“Around 5:30 this morning, we heard that a shed had been discovered and that there was enough food for all the residents of Gwagwalada,” explains one man. “People should come and help themselves. Everywhere on these bags there are written “Covid 19 food aid.” Sheds filled to the brim with food have already been forced and searched in several Nigerian cities: Lagos, Port Harcourt, Jos or even Kaduna.
On the side of the road, Timi and her best friend, both 19, show their prey wrapped in a scarf. “I saw all these people and went with the flow. We saw a lot of people there. There are even people who died, they did not manage to get out of the hangar alive, she confirms. This reserve is huge! We saw lots of food! See! See what we found! We failed to take more because people were struggling. ”
Lack of transparency
Two women, perhaps three, would have lost their lives, trampled by the crowd, who were busy emptying the hangar filled to the brim. Tabia, barefoot under the loincloth, screams her anger. “They have been hiding this food while they wait for the election, and when they come, they will take it out! She’s indignant. We Nigerians suffer too much. Most of our young people do not have a job. Yes, there are some who become criminals, but how can we blame them? People are starving! Our government must leave, they are not helping us! ”
Authorities ensure that this assistance was held in the event of an emergency or the second wave of the pandemic, but the lack of transparency in the management of funds and the discovery of these hangars across the country weakened the confidence of Nigerians in the face of their leaders.
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