Civil servants express concern over suspension of FG’s subsidised rice sale

The Federal Government promised to sell 30,000 metric tonnes of 50-kilogram bags of milled rice to Nigerians at a subsidised rate of ₦40,000.

A cross-section of civil servants in Abuja have expressed concerns over the suspension of the sale of the Federal Government’s subsidised rice at ₦40,000 per bag of 50 kilograms.

They made their feelings known after discovering the sudden disappearance of officials at different registration units for the purchase of the rice.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Federal Government promised to sell 30,000 metric tonnes of 50-kilogram bags of milled rice to Nigerians at a subsidised rate of ₦40,000.

While inaugurating the scheme, Abubakar Kyari, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security explained that the move by the government was part of its intervention and efforts to crash the prices of food items in Nigerian markets.

NAN also reports that the sale commenced and lasted for over a week before it was put on hold without notice, an action, workers that were yet to benefit from, decried.

Speaking with NAN, Mary Nwachukwu, said she was surprised and disturbed when she got to the point of payment at the federal secretariat and found out the officials were not on duty.

"I was encouraged to come to the registration unit at the secretariat, only for me to be told that the whole thing has been suspended.

“Nobody knows what may happen next and if the scheme will still continue,’’ she asked.

Kudirat Muktah, another civil servant who said she experienced a delay in accessing the rice at the initial stage, frowned at the suspension order

“I was here for two days to get my name registered, but because of the huge crowd, I decided to wait until it eases off, only to be told now that the exercise has been suspended.

“What I heard from the grapevine was that the suspension was as a result of the rowdiness and chaos at the registration and payment point.

“If they can adopt a better method of access to the rice, it will be better for us,’’ she said.

Sylvester Edwards, equally expressed disappointment at the news of the suspension of the sale of the rice, even after he had struggled for two days to get his name written down.

“My brother, I spent two days here before I could register my name, waiting to be called for the rice, but now I am hearing another story.

“Although, we heard that the rice will be accessed through another method, but we cannot trust this government.

“The palliative rice will, to some extent ease the burden of hunger, so, it is important for the government to bring it back,’’ he added.

Meanwhile, findings by NAN confirmed that there was a new arrangement on the ground for the purchase of the rice, to end the cumbersome process. An authoritative source in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, who pleaded anonymity, said it was not the office that coordinated the scheme as speculated.

The source said that the palliative rice was being handled by the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) after it was inaugurated by the minister.

On the suspension of the sale, the source said that the registration of beneficiaries was ordered to be stopped due to the rowdiness, noise and chaos within the HOS premises.

“People could no longer attend to work in their offices as a result of this exercise. Therefore, we have to suspend it.

“We also read the report by your agency about people groaning and facing difficulty in accessing the government’s 50 kg bag of rice at ₦40,000.

"The plan on the ground is to decentralise the purchase by involving ministries and the agencies under them. The core civil servant will register in their ministries while those in the agencies will register with their parent ministries,’’ the source added.

The source advised officials at MDAs to liaise with their mother ministries to get details of the new payment and distribution method of the palliative rice.

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