Lockdown: AYCF blasts Sanwo-Olu for neglecting Arewa community in distributing palliatives

- AYCF has lambasted the Lagos government over the distribution of lockdown palliatives in the state

- The group, through its national president, Yerima Shettima, said the Arewa community in Lagos was totally left out in the distribution of the palliatives

- Shettima described the action of the state government as uncivilised and unacceptable

The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) has berated the Lagos state government for neglecting its community in the state in the distribution of the lockdown palliatives.

In a statement sent to Legit.ng by the national president of AYCF, Alhaji Yerima Shettima, the group said it was aware that its community in Lagos was totally left out in the distribution of the palliatives.

Shettima noted that the group was pained by the agony of its people in the state for being neglected, saying that the palliative is not a gift but a right for all the people in the state, regardless of which part of Nigeria they came from.

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The statement read: "It has come to the notice of our organization that the Arewa community in Lagos state has been totally left out in the distribution of palliatives in the ongoing lockdown.

"We wish to, therefore, indicate our position as follows: We share pain and agony of the Arewa community for being neglected by the Lagos state government as if they not residents of the State. And we believe that this is totally unacceptable. We wish to remind the Lagos state government that the palliative is not a gift but a right for all the people in the state, regardless of which part of Nigeria they came from.

"The COVID-19 is a global problem and anywhere there is lockdown the authorities come forward with food and other essentials for the people of the communities where the pandemic is infecting and killing people. We are appalled that the Lagos state government has neither offered the palliative to the Arewa community nor make any official announcement about its plans for the Arewa community.

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"We wish to remind the Lagos state government that it would be doing no special favour to the Area community by giving them what rightly belongs to them. All relevant laws are here to confirm the difference between pandemic palliatives and favors by a government."

Shettima, however, said that it is uncivilized, unthinkable and unacceptable for the Lagos state government to abandon the Arewa community in the crucial hour of need.

He further said: "There is now a pandemic and there's the attendant lockdown for which no reasonable government will fold its arms and watch citizens in avoidable suffering.

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"We, at the AYCF say no to this open selective patronage in One Nigeria. A skewed process that takes the suffering of a section of its citizens as less important than that of other citizens stands condemnable by all Nigerian men and women of conscience. To be forewarned is to be forearmed."

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Tuesday night, April 28, announced 195 Covid-19 cases, the highest daily figure recorded so far by the agency.

It was reported that in a series of tweets on its verified Twitter handle as at 11:50 pm, NCDC made the announcement as Nigeria's coronavirus cases tragically soared to 1532 figure benchmark.

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Source: Legit.ng