SPECIAL REPORT….How Enugu govt shared covid-19 palliatives that brought more pains than joy

“In efforts to cushion the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Enugu State Government embarked on the distribution of palliatives across 17 local governments.

A 15-member committee, headed by the Deputy Governor, Hon. Cecelia Ezeilo, was set up to coordinate the distribution of bags of rice, beans, garri, gallons of oil, noodles, cartons of Tomato paste, tubers of yams to local churches to pass on to their members.

Sadly, a series of complaints filtered in both from the Local governments and the churches of how the distribution of these relief packages was marred, and many vulnerable citizens never got them. Arinze Chijioke visited several communities to report.”

 

80 years old, and all alone in a world of misfortune.

Before the entire country went into lockdown as a result of the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic, Ezeugwu Victoria had been indoors.

Blind. Old. Weak and wrinkled, her day literally begins and ends within the confines of her dimly lit one-room apartment. She calls out for help each time she needs to ease herself and when she wants to eat. On days when there is no one to help with food, she sleeps hungry and only prays to wake up again the next day.

On a hot Tuesday afternoon, Victoria sits on a black wooden mortar at the entrance to her room located at Onuiyi, a community, just one kilometre away from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, dipping her shaky hand inside a pot containing Ayaraya, a locally made dish from Yam and Pigeon Peas.

Beside her lies a walking stick. After dipping her hand inside the pot, it takes her several seconds to raise it to her mouth and back again for some more- a clear sign of ageing.

Two years ago, Victoria had someone she called her daughter who always provided for her needs of food, water and ran other errands for her. She had lost her husband years ago. They had no children.

“She was the only one I always shared stories with. She was like the daughter I never had. We were always happy together and she made me want to live longer” Victoria said, tears beginning to well up in her tired eyes.

But one day, Chiamaka, the girl helping her, took her bags and said she wanted to travel. She did not say where she was travelling to. She did not even tell anyone when she would return to continue taking care of Victoria.

“I insisted that she stay back, but she said no and told me that the angels would take care of me while she was away. That was the last time I heard from her,” Victoria said, her voice shaking and tears now dripping down her cheeks and settling on her lips.

The next story she heard was that Chiamaka had died mysteriously after she became pregnant. That broke her world and the thought of who would reassure her of the need to be alive troubled her every other day.

Failed promises by Local Government

When Victoria heard from her neighbours that the government had decided to provide palliatives across local governments for households that could barely feed during the lockdown, she could not contain her joy. Like others who belong to the class termed poorest of the poor, she prayed to benefit from the package.

But her hopes were soon dashed.

It is well over four months since she heard that her local council had been distributing palliatives to vulnerable households.  But no one has come to her doorstep to deliver food items from the government.

“Those who bring me the food I eat are reverend fathers. Sometimes, when I go to church, they tell us that some individuals made donations for the poor. Sometimes, members of the Legion of Mary also bring me food items and I find anybody to help me prepare it so I can eat,” she said dipping her hand inside her tongue and raising it up to the sky to affirm that she was speaking the truth.

Like Victoria, there are several vulnerable households spread across communities in Nsukka who are complaining that they have not received anything from local government officials and are wondering when and where the palliatives were shared.

For these households, the means of survival within the period of lockdown was donations from private individuals in different churches, although the Local Government claimed severally that they have made sure that households in Nsukka got palliatives.

The government lied to us

Ngwu Victoria, 53, completely disagrees that the LG distributed food items. She has had four different surgical operations in the last 15 years and suffered from an illness she can’t even explain. On one of the several occasions when she went to be operated upon, she almost lost her life.

Before the lockdown, she had a major challenge-how to get food. With her husband dead, no work to do and age beginning to weigh in on her, she had to depend on food from her neighbours. There was no choice of what to eat. Whatever came her way was good.

Victoria prayed to be remembered when the government started distributing food items. Sadly, nobody came to deliver any food package to her.

“If some people are receiving anything from the government, I am not aware”, she said insisting that the only time she got food was when one of the Catholic churches in Nsukka invited some vulnerable households and gave them rice tied in black nylon.

Victoria says she does not have any food item inside her house as the one she received from the church had finished. She said she would have sought loans to establish a business. But she can’t, since she has been ill.

We had more than enough for the people —LG

Samuel Ngwu, media aide to the late chairman of Nsukka, LG, Patrick Omeje told Ripples Nigeria that they employed the services of ward councillors, traditional rulers and town union presidents and monitored the distribution process just to ensure that no household was left out.

He claimed that the items were “too massive”, reaching down to all the 20 political wards and 45 autonomous communities in Nsukka. He said that the chairman donated a total of 500 bags of rice, 400 cartons of noodles and 300 gallons of oil to the 20 political wards and 45 autonomous Communities that make up the council.

This is apart from a total of 300 cartons of noodles and 20 gallons of oil donated by the MD/CEO of Wilson Nigeria Limited, Chief William Agbo and an additional 400 bags of 10kg Rice and 600 tubers of yam donated by the member representing Nsukka West at the State House of Assembly, Hon. Emma Ugwuerua.

When contacted, the Councilor of Ihe, one of the Wards that make up Onuiyi, Okoro Onyekachi, said that the LG used community leaders who brought names of people with which they collected palliatives.

He, however, noted that there were people who did not get palliatives as the items were not enough to go round. His submission contrasts that of the media aide to the former LG chairman who said they had enough to go round every household.

One of the community leaders in Onuiyi, Leornard Ngwu, maintained that the government did not visit doorsteps to deliver palliatives as claimed. He added that he only heard when the LG invited some people in the community and gave them N1,000 and three packs of noodles each.

“That was all I heard about relief packages from the government. Lockdown has kept everyone at home. We no longer go to the market. I have had to borrow on several occasions to get food for the family, even when the government promised us food”, he regretted.

We have only heard about palliatives on radio

Ajibo Rosemary has packed out of her home located at the backwoods of Alor Uno- another community in Nsukka after it was destroyed by erosion which lasted for over 30 years.

She now stays at a family compound with some of her rescued property. Before the lockdown, Rosemary would traverse her community in search of palm fronds which she uses to make brooms and sells at the local market.

But during the lockdown, when the government asked people to stay in their homes, Rosemary was not able to sell.

She says it has been difficult feeding. “The suffering is too much. We don’t go to the market because the government says we should stay at home,” she said as she tried to make fire with a matchbox.

Rose who lost her husband years ago said she was excited when she heard the government was coming to deliver food items to households who could barely feed as a result of the lockdown.

“They told us on the radio that they were giving palliatives to households. But I have not received anything”. No member of my family has received either. They are just deceiving us,” she said.

Letting out a smile, she alleged that it was possible that some leaders had brought the packages and kept them in their houses.

One Community, 4 cartons of noodles, 6 bags of 2kg rice

The traditional ruler of Alor Uno Community, Nelson Chibuzor Ogbonna said that the local government was only trying to attract attention by reporting in the media that they distributed palliatives to households.

He however, explained that the only time they got food items from the local government was when he was invited and given four cartons of noodles and six bags of 2kg rice and was told it was for the entire community.

“At first, we did not know how to share it amongst our people because we have 6 quarters in this community and each quarter is made up of 5-9 villages. We decided to give each quarter a bag of the 2kg rice and some packs of noodles. Most of them just gave it to their women. Many households could not benefit since it was very small,” he explained.

Some members of his community have had to come together to help those families who are hardest hit as a result of the lockdown.

“As far as I am concerned, we have not received anything from the government. If you go and ask many of them, they will tell you they have not received anything”, his voice switching from contempt to rage.

Palliatives, only for select households

Atama Augustina, has been cutting