The Katsina State Government has revealed that it did not get the N5 billion that was allegedly used to purchase grains and distribute them to state citizens, but rather received N2 billion from the federal government's palliative program.
At a news conference on Wednesday, the state's commissioner for information, culture, and home affairs, Mr. Bala Salisu-Zango, stated that the money was disbursed for additional relief for the state's suffering citizens.
Zango pointed out that the initial federal government budgeted N5 billion for the purchase of rice, maize, and fertilizer to be distributed to various states.
But after discussions with the state governors, it was decided that the money should go directly to the states to speed up the procurement process and boost regional economies.
As a result, it was decided to provide states the money gradually, with a specific designation for the purchase of rice and corn.
Additionally, he said that the Central Bank of Nigeria had been instructed to send the monies to the states as a soft loan, with the federal government repaying 52% and the states repaying 48% over the course of a year.
Zango claims that the state government, working under the guidance of Governor Dikko Radda, has already used the N2 billion received to buy 40,000 bags of rice for distribution in each of the state's voting units.
According to the Katsina Information Commissioner, this comes on top of the prior instruction Governor Radda provided to all local government councils in the state to get and give away corn to inhabitants at no cost, which has already been done.
Zango also urged the populace to maintain calm by promising that the state administration would buy maize and distribute it as needed once the next tranche of cash arrived from the federal government.
