By Laleye Dipo in Minna
Reports from the Nigeria Customs Service in Minna Niger state indicate that the committee set up by the federal government to distribute confiscated food items to Internally Displaced Persons’ Camps and Orphanages on Friday foiled attempts by some fake NGOs to access the commodities.
Several bags of rice, cartons of vegetable oil and used cloths were to be shared out according to the directive of President Muhammad Buhari.
It was gathered that most of the fake Orphanages and managers of the IDP camps had stormed the Customs Service Area Command Office ahead of the arrival of the committee.
Unknown to these fake organisations, the committee had earlier carried out intelligence about the existence of orphanages and number of IDP camps in the state.
Some of the operators of the orphanages when they presented their fake documents to the committee were told bluntly “your organisation is not is existence”.
THISDAY learnt that an unnamed Permanent Secretary who also presented a letter for allocation of commodities was also turned back just as was done to an official from the Government House.
Mr Ikpebi Kadiri Angulu, spokesman of the committee, confirmed to THISDAY that “most of the non governmental organisations and orphanages that came forward are not genuine
“I will not say they are fake NGOs but over 70 per cent applications we received were not running orphanages or IDP camps which is our specification. Some are not orphanages, they are foundations or welfare homes,” Angulu insisted.
Angulu confirmed that the Committee had to refuse a letter from a Permanent Secretary in Niger state who wanted to lay claim to some bags of rice and the state Prisons Service
He disclosed that 250 bags of rice had already been allocated to the IDP camp in Zugeru while 150 bags were given to the Niger state Orphanage home in Minna out of the 19,000 bags expected to be distributed in the state.
The Customs Area Controller for Niger, Kogi and Kwara states, Alhaji Yussuf Abba Ibrahim, had earlier disclosed that the organisation made 16 seizures which included 732 50kg bags of rice, cartons of vegetable oil, bales of second hand cloths and used cars within the first quarter of the year.
According to Alhaji Yussuf Abba Ibrahim, between January and March this year the Area Command was able to generate N814,755,563.68 surpassing the N539,136,098.56 generated within the same period last year.
The highest amount of N599,981,183.03 was generated last month.
