The Ekiti State Government has said that the items looted from Federal Government’s silos and the Agric Development Programme warehouse in Ado-Ekiti on Friday were not COVID-19 palliatives but fertilizers.
According to a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ekiti State, Yinka Oyebode, the COVID-19 palliatives in the state had since been distributed during the lockdown period.
“Ekiti State has NO CACOVID palliative warehouse as all the palliatives have been distributed,” Oyebode said.
“The items being carted away are Single Super Phosphate fertilizer and NPK which they have erroneously thought was “Gaari’’, cassava grains.
“The SEMA store too has only emergency supplies for disaster response.
“Some people even made away with pre-fermented corns preserved for planting. All these items are poisonous and not fit for consumption.
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“We, therefore, appeal to our people not to consume these items because they can kill,’’
In a similar statement, Dr Olabode Adetoyi, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, confirmed the looting, warning that most of the items carted away contained chemically-treated seeds meant for planting.
They are not suitable for consumption,’’ he declared.
Report says that the looters actually defied the heavy downpour in Ado-Ekiti on Friday night to storm the warehouses, thinking they will cart away bags of rice, beans, indomie and other consumables as it was the case in Lagos,Osun,Ilorin and some other states.