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Kebbi residents loot govt, private warehouses
Unidentified individuals in Kebbi State launched an assault on the government warehouse located in the Bayan Kara area of Birnin Kebbi, the state capital, on Saturday night.
They brazenly made off with food supplies, despite the presence of security personnel stationed at the warehouse. Not stopping there, the hoodlums proceeded to break into private warehouses and shops in the vicinity, pillaging more food items. Among their loot was a truck already loaded with assorted grains, destined for distribution in Birnin Kebbi.
This incident mirrors similar attacks on warehouses witnessed in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and Suleja in Niger State. These events unfold against the backdrop of a mounting cost of living crisis, widely attributed to the removal of petrol subsidies and the fluctuation of the national currency.
Muhammadu Gwadangwaji, the Chairman of the food vendors association at Bayan Kara Market in Birnin Kebbi, recounted how some shops and warehouses fell victim to arson by agitated youths.
READ ALSO: Police arrest security guards, 13 suspects over looting of Abuja warehouse
“They (security agents) fired gunshots and teargas into the air, but they (the youths) were not deterred. They forced their way in and looted the government warehouse and some of our shops,” he said.
Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Nasir Idris,, Ahmed Idris, described the incident as “unfortunate”.
He stated: “The hoodlums had earlier attacked the consignment of food items that was brought to the state for distribution to the people by Dangote before going to the government warehouse to loot it.
“Such incident has never happened in Kebbi before. The food items they looted are part of the foodstuffs purchased by the state government for distribution to people of the state.
“Government has procured and distributed assorted grains worth over N5 billion in over 200 trucks. It is unfortunate those who broke into the warehouse had gone there to steal what belongs to people of the state”, he further decried.
He said the government had secured its warehouses to prevent reoccurrence.The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Nafiu Abubakar, did not answer several phone calls by this newspaper seeking the command’s reaction to the incidents.
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