Gom Mirian
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has kicked off distribution of food items to residents of the state to alleviate suffering caused by the removal of fuel subsidy and the economic hardship resulting from it.
Speaking at the symbolic presentation of the food items at the mini-stadium in the state, the Governor said each person will get 10 kilogrammes of rice, five kilogrammes of beans, yam flour and ‘garri’.
He further said 5 kilogrammes of rice will be shared among “the poorest of the poor and the vulnerable, ” that is, 40,000 bags of rice would be distributed to 200,000 people under the short-term palliative plan tagged “the Sustainable Actions for Economic Recovery (SAfER).
Makinde disclosed that “the State Government procured 37,000 bags of rice to complement the 3,000 bags of rice received from the Federal Government.
“The additional 37,000 bags procured will enable each of the beneficiaries to get 10 kilogrammes of rice, apart from five kilogrammes of beans, yam flour and ‘garri’ that will be distributed to the beneficiary-households.”
While noting that the withdrawal of fuel subsidies had impacted everyone in the country, Makinde stated that other packages were in place for the general public’s benefit.
He also announced that a N500 million facility would be provided to small company owners in the form of low-interest loans and that 10,000 farmers would get more agriculture inputs.
Gov. Makinde stated: “Under the SAfER package, agro-preneurs trained under the Youth Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness Project (YEAP), who have established agribusinesses will receive enterprise support of N500 million.
“Also, 100,000 health insurance packages have been rolled out for the vulnerable in the society. The services of ‘Omituntun’ mass transit buses have been extended to cover inter-city routes across all the five zones of the state, while more buses have been made available for the transportation of civil servants in the state,” he added.
