The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has started the distribution of seized smuggled rice, vegetable oil to orphanage homes in Lagos.
Spokesman of the Service, Deputy Comptroller Joseph Attah, who confirmed this development in a chat with journalists in Lagos, said since peace has returned to the North Eastern part of the region, there is a lesser need for the products at the camp of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), hence the supply to orphanages across NIgeria.
He said, “The Comptroller-General of Customs, Col Hameed Ali (rtd.) has secured presidential nod to extend the distribution of relief materials such as rice, vegetable oil, soap, and spaghetti, used clothing and all that to orphanages across the country.
“Before now, the National Logistics Committee was distributing these items to victims of insurgency in the North East. It was restricted to the North East, but with the relative peace in the region and increasing numbers of IDPs returning to their ancestral homes, there is need to extend the distribution of these to other victims of herdsmen crisis, communal and more importantly orphanages across the country,” he stated.
Attah further disclosed that a subcommittee headed by Compt. Yakubu Salihu, had arrived Lagos to begin distribution of 68,226 bags of rice to 98 orphanage homes in Lagos.
Giving a breakdown of the materials, Attah said 34,332 kegs of 25 litres of vegetable oil, 68,226 bags of rice, second hand clothing, used foot wears, and spaghetti would be distributed among the 98 orphanages.
He continued, “We have foot wears, used clothing and other perishable seized items, which we will try as much as possible to ensure that it gets to the intended recipients. We have identified 98 orphanages, and we are still identifying more, and we are making contacts with them.”
Already as I speak with you, five orphanages have already arrived and these are the early callers and there are many others on the road.
“Also, these relief items will be loaded and escorted to these orphanages, and the recipients will sign a landing certificate indicating the number taken from the warehouse actually gets to the intended orphanage, and the management of the various orphanages received it, and the escort officer returned with the landing certificate,” he said.
Attah said the number of bags of rice to be given to each orphanage would be based on the number of children in the home. “It is a presidential directive, and we will continue to implement it till there is a directive to the contrary,” he added.
