October 11, (THEWILL) – Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has revealed plans by his administration to subsidise sales of Garri, Beans, Rice and other foodstuff across the 20 Local Government Areas of the state to cushion the effect of hardship occasioned by fuel subsidy removal on the citizens.
This was just as he launched the sale of subsidised rice from the federal government to residents of the state to mitigate the effect of inflation, high cost of living and food commodities in order to improve their living conditions.
Abiodun disclosed this on Thursday, during the official flag-off ceremony of the sale of rice at subsidised rates to residents of Ogun State by the federal government of Nigeria held at the Arcade Ground of the Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
“We will soon be implementing our own version of this scheme from each local government, meaning we will implement this across the twenty local government areas of the state to deepen the reach into our grassroots.
“We will be selling food items like garri, rice and beans at heavily subsidised prices”, he said.
The governor commended President Bola Tinubu for his unwavering policies and dedication to supporting the Agriculture sector in making the rice available especially to tackle food insecurity in the face of economic hardship.
He lamented that the global and national economic downturn had turned many Nigerians, especially the vulnerable families, who were struggling with the increasing cost of living and inflation, noting that apart from the rice the FG was putting in place interventions to ease the burn of hardship on them occasioned by subsidy removal.
Abiodun said, “The countenance of President Bola Armed Tinubu to this commitment to ensuring that he tackles food inflation and also improves the livelihood of our people. I will first and foremost extend our profound gratitude to our President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for his unwavering dedication to not just supporting the Agriculture sector but also ensuring food security for our citizens, especially in light of the current economic realities facing our nation.
“This is a clearer demonstration of a leader, who is responsive and thoughtful. This initiative would not have been better timed. It is appreciated and welcomed particularly following the removal of the petroleum subsidy and this will go a long way in cushioning the impact not this subsidy removal.
“There is no denying that the global and national economic downturn has had a high impact on many Nigerians particularly the most vulnerable, many families are grappling with rising cost of living and inflation and have limited access to basic necessities.
“The federal and the state governments are kindly aware of the need for smooth intervention to ease these burdens on our people, we understand it is our responsibility to provide relief, particularly during these trying times.
“Both the federal and state governments remained committed to offering the required palliative measures to cushion the effect of this current economic situation. This flag-off for the sales of rice by the federal government is one of the interventions designed to offer temporary relief to our households”, he added.
