No State Hoarded COVID-19 Palliatives, NGF Insists

A file photo of members of the NGF at a meeting in Abuja in January 2020.
 

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has denied allegations that COVID-19 palliatives meant for distribution were hoarded by state governments.

According to a statement signed by the forum’s spokesperson Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, on Monday, the governors have held several meetings since the #EndSARS street protests and started to address concerns of members of the public and that they identified calls for justice and an end to police brutality.

“The NGF wishes to state categorically that no State has been involved in or has hoarded any palliatives,” the governors said.

Although the governors regretted the loss of lives and property occasioned by the violent protests that erupted they stressed that it is important for, “a lot of the information circulating on the social media needs to be fact-checked.”

“The NGF pleads with members of the public to desist from spreading rumours which further creates panic and stampede.

“For example, some of the properties stolen and vandalised, include palliatives set aside for vulnerable members of society.

“The NGF reemphasizes and corrects the impression that palliatives found in warehouses that were broken into in Lagos and some other states were kept in storage for members of the society especially our vulnerable citizens,” the statement read in part.

According to the governors, the erroneous impression in the public domain that these palliatives were hoarded is inaccurate, “entirely erroneous and untrue.”

The NGF added that some of the palliatives had the CACOVID stamp embossed on them, meaning that their source is unambiguous.

“Until mid-October, when the NGF had its last meeting, up to ten states had not participated in the flag-off ceremonies for the distribution of palliatives in their States. This was because the items meant for distribution in these states had not been completely received from CACOVID,” the statement added.

The NGF explained that some of the states that still had palliatives in their warehouses chose to keep a strategic reserve ahead of a projected second wave of COVID-19.

They said further that some states were still receiving palliatives from the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development.

NGF, therefore, called on members of the public to check their facts while everyone recognize the need for improved governance and are cautious not to push the wrong narrative.