Exposed How Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Food Items Are Sold In Yola By Unaccredited Persons

By Tom Garba, Yola

As tens of trucks are being brought into Adamawa state on weekly basis in other to relieve thousands of people who are internally displaced as a results of insurgency attacks in Northern part of the state, other people are making serious gains by either diverting or cornering hundreds of bags of grains into the city of Yola, disbursing it at a very cheap price than it should.

The IDPs food items that are mostly being sold around the town are bags of Rice with a label boldly written as “ICPR” the product which is known to be distributed by Red Cross international organisation.

Barr Caleb Atiman an eye witness who made the exposition of this kind of criminality, said; immediately I received a surprise visit by a stranger who asked me whether I can buy a bag of rice from the IDPs camp, I was too inquisitive to know how comes the bags are flogged in town, the buyer only reply that” there are many people selling it all over the place”.

To further satisfy his Inquisition he reply to the affirmative was “yes”, lo and behold the man went and brought a big of rice in a tricycle.

“I was so shocked  when a total stranger who walked up to me to buy a bag of rice from the IDPs camp which I know should not be but I tried to find out the true when my friend went way and came back with a big bag of rice with Red Cross inscription on it”.

“It pains me much that I have to take my whole day to let the world know about it, I decided to get the media. It seems our official are now diverting what belongs to this our brothers and sister who are suffering from the Boko Haram scourge,” he said.

Another eyes witness, Gibson Swagidi, a reporter with Gotel TV affirmed that, a tricycle heavily stocked with bags of rice belonging to the IDPs is roving around Jimeta town looking for patronage from buyers who are use to the shoddy business.

When contacted a woman who is not a IDPs, displayed a ticket that supposed to be from the camp and claimed to get the bags from there said she is trying to get a buyer.

In a response the secretary of  Adamawa state emergency agency (ADSEMA), Alhaji Bello Furo said these shabby deals is certainly not from his men and not aware of anything that exist like that, but said he will swing into action with other agencies to investigate that.

He further said that all the activities of Red Cross in the state which are in  connection with IDPs are manned and done by the rescue organisation as the entire food product had manifested to be their own.

“Red Cross have been doing their own thing in their own way , will consult and find out the truth, Honestly We are not aware anything is happening like that but will investigate the whole matter,” Foru said

Before now there have been series of serious complaints by the IDPs alleging that all the food and other relieve materials are not getting to them suspecting officials to have been diverting the items to places that is not suppose to be.