Boko Haram: Victims allege diversion of grains from Federal Government

The victims of insurgency-ravaged communities of Adamawa State have cried out over the alleged diversion of 1,470 tons relief grains donated by the Federal Government to cushion the hardships caused by Boko Haram attacks.
Indications that the distribution of the 72 trailer loads of grains delivered a forthnight ago by the Federal Government, through the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, may have been marred by scandal surfaced when the District Head of Gulak, Bello Hijadi Black, revealed that the “whole of Madagali got only 250 bags of grains”.
Black, who spoke on behalf the victims of the insurgency in his community, expressed his displeasure over the “criminal diversion” of over 1,000 bags of 50kg grains meant for his constituency out of the two trailer loads of relief materials.
It would be recalled that the Federal Government had a forthnight ago presented 1,470 tonnes of grains for distribution in Adamawa State, with special emphasis by who was represented by Ibrahim Babetel, the Senior. Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari, that priority attention be given to insurgency-ravaged areas.
Such areas included Madagali, Michika, Mubi North, Mubi South, Maiha, Hong and Gombi.
The gesture, according to Bapetel, was to cushion the hardship occasioned by the attacks on the people of the state by Boko Haram insurgents.
But investigations revealed that other councils in the state not mentioned as deserving of priority attention in the distribution, rather got away with the lion share of the relief items.
The consignment, instead of being dispatched in the 50kg bags they were delivered into the state, were allegedly re-bagged into 25kg bags before distribution to most of the insurgency-ravaged areas.
However, the District Head of Jimeta, Alhaji Baba Inuwa Pharis, when asked about the relief items, simply referred our correspondent to the Head of Service for Yola North Local Government Area.
According to Pharis, he never received or saw any of relief items though he was aware some relief items were distributed by the Federal Government.
Those who spoke on the issue, but who would not want their names to be known, made a special reference to Numan where it was claimed two truck loads of grains were delivered, but one of the trucks also got missing.
It is being alleged that the truck load was diverted by a chief who may have influenced the distribution of the relief item to the council.
A source said: “An area like Numan got two truck loads of the item, while it been alleged that one of the paramount rulers from the area, who may have influenced the distribution, allegedly took delivery of one of the trucks for himself.”
Hon. Emmanuel Tsamdu, an opposition member from the Peoples Democratic Party representing Madagali Constituency in the Adamawa State House of Assembly and its Minority Whip, expressed displeasure with the distribution of the relief materials.
Tsamdu said: “This distribution was done in Abuja and only the template was brought to the state.”
He said the distribution after all may not have been done from an altruistic disposition to help those who were really hard hit by the insurgency.