The year was 2006. President Olusegun Obasanjo was preparing to leave office for the final time. He had worked tirelessly to build Nigeria’s foreign reserves from its lows of $5 billion in 1999 to about $42 billion in 2006.

This was despite crude oil selling for an average of $46 per barrel during his administration. But there was something that kept weighing the Nigerian Naira down. Even with $42 billion in foreign reserves, Obasanjo’s administration was facing heavy criticism and pressure from all corners because of this heavy burden.

You see, this burden weighed a whopping $36 billion. Yeah, that was how much Nigeria owed in external debt at the time. Most of that amount was owed to the Paris Club, a group of major creditor countries that included the United States, United Kingdom, France, and some other Western countries.

Then came April 2006 and Obasanjo said, quote, Nigeria will not owe anybody in the Paris Club one cub. A few days after this bold declaration, there was this headline from the New York Times saying, quote, Nigeria pays off its big debt, sign of an economic rebound. Baba had done it.

Before this huge announcement was made, the President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration had been engaged in discussions with the Paris Club on this Nigeria’s debt burden. Those discussions yielded results when, in 2005, the Paris Club proposed an unprecedented debt buyback at a discount. They agreed to a 60% discount on Nigeria’s debt that would cancel all of Nigeria’s debt to them if Nigeria could come up with a cash payment of roughly $12 billion, meaning the Nigerian government only needed to pay $12 billion of the 30 they owed.

Now, with $18 billion being written off then, Obasanjo’s administration was able to pay the balance of $12 billion, and from there, Nigeria became debt-free, at least for the time being. This helped stabilize the value of the Naira at the time, and with crude oil prices up during this time, the Nigerian economy grew rapidly to the top spot in Africa, a growth that continued during the administration of Yardwa through to that of Goodluck Jonathan. Then 2015 happened, and Nigeria’s economy became unrecognizable.

Now, to show you exactly how bad the situation is, Nigeria is reportedly using almost all of its revenue to service debt. But how did we get here? Come with me, and I’ll show you. Nigeria’s debt profile.

7.6 trillion Naira in domestic debt. 7.22 billion dollars. The country’s debt service cost in the first quarter of this year was 1.94 trillion Naira.

The Nigerian government currently owes a total of $91 billion. That is both domestic and foreign debt. Of that amount, $42 billion is said to be foreign.

Now, according to Bloomberg, Nigeria spent 80% of its revenue on debt servicing in the first 11 months of 2022. The World Bank placed that figure at around 96% for the entire year of 2022. But you know what’s more worrying? Spending 96% of your revenue to pay debt means you’re borrowing almost 100% of your annual budget.

This is scary because records show that it is getting worse and not better. Between 1999 and 2021, local and external federal government borrowings jumped from 3.55 trillion Naira to 26.91 trillion Naira, an increase of 658%. Between June 2015 to December 2020, Buhari borrowed 7.6 trillion Naira.

President Mohamed Buhari increased Nigerians’ debt from $7.3 billion in 2015 to $28.57 billion as of December 2020. This caused the country’s exchange rate to move from 197 Naira to the dollar in 2015 to 381 Naira at the end of December 2020. We are talking about 1% increase in Nigerians’ debt by 173.2% in just 6 years.

In comparison, President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration met Nigeria’s debt profile at 6.17 trillion Naira in 2011. According to a report by The Cable, local debt amounted to 5.62 trillion Naira while foreign debt stood at $3.5 billion. The exchange rate at the time was 156.7 Naira to $1.

In 2014, towards the end of Jonathan’s administration, external debt was $6.45 billion. Domestic debt rose to 7.9 trillion Naira while the Naira fell slightly to 158.6 Naira to $1. After the elections, however, everything changed.

By the end of 2015, Nigerians’ foreign debt jumped to $7.3 billion while domestic debt increased by 8.4 trillion Naira. The Naira crashed to $197 per dollar. Not even a year in office yet, Buhari immediately gave Nigerians a clue of how his government planned to carry its affairs.

So far, Buhari is the country’s biggest borrower, increasing public debt by more than 173%. Oh, hang on, there is Tinubu now, whose administration has been acting like a bunch of 5-year-old kids with happy Christmas money in a candy shop. According to the Vanguard, the federal government under Tinubu borrowed 20.1 trillion Naira from domestic investors in the first year of President Tinubu’s administration alone.

But why are they borrowing this much? What are they doing with all this money? Now, the most apparent reason for Nigeria’s rising debt profile is the rising cost of governance. This is simply put, any cost associated with the running of government. This includes recurrent and capital expenditure.

While recurrent expenditure talks about the amount of money the government spends on overhead and personnel costs, capital expenditure on the other hand talks about government expenditure in providing infrastructural facilities. The problem with the Nigerian situation is that the government is borrowing a whole lot of money to spend on overhead and personnel costs. As a result, infrastructure is in decay while the people in power focus on buying yachts, jets, SUVs, and building mansions.

The point I’m trying to make here is, spending billions of borrowed funds to give public officials lavish lifestyles has reduced the amount of money available for capital expenditures. This means roads don’t get built, hospitals are poorly managed, some have no lights, and others have collapsing structures. Let’s not even get into the education sector.

There is literally no money to improve our power infrastructures leading to the national power grid collapsing every four market days. The public transportation system is a mess. No rail lines in major cities to help solve the public transportation crisis.

Now, all of this put together have led to a fall in investments. Companies are running away which in turn has led to a reduction in the level of employment which ultimately led to the stagnation of our economic growth. Also to add, borrowing a ton of money without restraint is bad.

Yeah, pretty bad. But how? You might ask. Well, more debt means a weaker Naira.

The weaker Naira means imports of goods are more expensive and exports bring in little value as a result. The weaker Naira also means crazy levels of inflation like we are witnessing right now. Food items are very expensive and people are no longer able to afford household items.

There is also the debt servicing we talked about earlier. Nigeria is currently using 96% of its revenue to service debt. Imagine working for 30 days and you are paid 500,000 Naira but then you have to use 408,000 Naira from that amount to pay your debt.

How do you survive on 20,000 Naira for another 30 days? It means you will have to borrow again and again and so the cycle continues. But is there a fix for this mess we are in? When the current president of Argentina was sworn in back in December 2023, his country’s situation was worse than Nigeria’s. But what did he do? Well, he took measures to reduce government spending.

It’s not a magic trick. All he did was cut down on the size of government, block the stealing of government funds, attract foreign direct investment through tax holidays, and improve the ease of doing business in the country. If you’re broke, you don’t need to go on a spending spree to build a mansion and buy a jet and a yacht and whatnot.

In all honesty, if Nigeria were a company, it would have filed for bankruptcy by now and maybe all the managers and directors could be behind bars. You see, when the last administration was under a lot of pressure to get money to run its operations, they went to the central bank and turned it into a printing press. With every Naira they printed, the Naira lost more value, inflation soared, and your savings became worth less than they used to be.

The result of that recklessness is still being felt today, with the current administration even worsening the situation with its borrowing and spending. Like I said earlier, the Tenibo administration has been acting like a bunch of five-year-old kids with happy Christmas money in a candy shop. They know they didn’t work to end this money they’re spending because of course these are loans.

However, they’re hell-bent on spending it all, but not on infrastructures, not on capital investment to help prop up the Nigerian economy. They tell you that the government is taking some loans to run its operations, then you turn on the news only to see that one of these operations is a VP residence that cost the country 21 billion Naira of money it doesn’t have. Imagine borrowing 21 billion Naira to build a mansion for your vice president at a time like this.

Are you trying to show to the people you borrowed this money from that all is well back at home? Because Nigerians know that all is not well here. So, who exactly are you trying to impress? You see, African leaders are the only crop of people that travel to western countries with about 200 delegates, spend millions of dollars in five-star hotels to attend meetings with their creditors whom they have gone to beg for money. My question to Nigerian leaders is, are you not ashamed of yourselves? When you jump on private jets to take you around the world, do you by any chance meet politicians from other countries with good economies? If you do, can you tell us what your conversation with them is usually like? Do you even talk to them? Because, make it make sense here.

How do you introduce yourself to the British Prime Minister, for example, when you go to one of these your meetings? Tell me, do you say, hey, I’m a senator from Nigeria. Yeah, I’m one of the folks who sing a song of allegiance to the president I should be holding accountable. I also try to warn people in my constituency who, by the way, voted for me against all forms of protest against the hunger they are currently enduring.

Or, do you say, I’m minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Yes, we know the economy is terrible right now, but Nigerians just need to sacrifice while we, the people elected to serve them, live our best lives. And to the governors, how do you live with yourselves? When you look into the mirror, who do you see? A father? A servant of the people? Or a wicked politician who doesn’t care about the plight of his people? For those who want to make Nigerians believe that economic hardship is a trial from God, how do you live with yourself? And to my fellow Nigerians, you need to know the truth.

Our economy is bad because of the terrible decisions of our leaders. When you take on loans as an individual, for example, and use those monies to buy fancy clothes to wear and oppress your neighbours, you’d better have a plan on how you’re going to pay back that money. Because when the time for repayment comes and you have not generated any income to pay back, there’s bound to be trouble.

That is the trouble we are in today. Most of the loans we are taking are being used to finance recurrent expenditures. Only a tiny fraction is used for capital expenditure.

Instead of investing in things that can yield results for the economy and help boost our GDP, our politicians are busy sharing money as palliatives. A year ago in 2023, Tinubu wrote to the National Assembly seeking 500 billion Naira for palliatives. July 2024, the federal government is sending 740 rice trucks to states.

How many Nigerians will even see these trucks? Not to talk of getting a grain of rice from these bags.

Nigeria’s struggle with oil theft and pipeline vandalism is akin to battling a hydra—a beast whose heads multiply every time one is severed. These challenges have, for decades, sunk their fangs into the country’s economic lifeblood, draining vitality and potential. Yet, Nigeria’s plight is not an isolated one. Like a plague, the twin evils of oil theft and pipeline sabotage have infected several other nations, each grappling with its own vicious cycle of loss and recovery.
In recent years, the audacity and scale of oil theft in Nigeria have grown to monstrous proportions. What once seemed like a manageable nuisance has mutated into a crisis, revealing the state’s weakening ability to protect its most valuable resource. The unchecked plundering of Nigeria’s oil wealth is not just a gash in the country’s economy—it is a haemorrhage that threatens to bleed the nation dry. As this shadow war rages on, Nigeria’s efforts mirror the struggles of other oil-rich nations ensnared by similar challenges.

A Global Tangle: Oil Theft Across the World

Nigeria’s struggles might feel uniquely overwhelming, but the curse of oil theft has spread its tendrils far beyond its borders. Mexico battles its own demons with huachicoleo, the illegal tapping of pipelines driven by organised crime. Like thieves in the night, these criminal cartels slither through the shadows, leaving a trail of loss and environmental destruction in their wake. Mexico has attempted to cut off this serpent’s head with military crackdowns, shutting down pipelines and transporting fuel by tankers, but corruption remains the venom that weakens the system, rendering success elusive.
Meanwhile, in Venezuela, where oil is both a curse and a salvation, theft is rampant amid the ruins of an economic collapse. Like vultures circling a dying beast, smugglers and criminals pick apart what remains of the nation’s oil infrastructure. The government’s grip is weak, hobbled by political unrest and financial instability, and so the bleeding continues. Similarly, Iraq, whose oil fields stretch across conflict zones like patches of fertile land in a desert of strife, has endured years of sabotage. Militant groups prey on its vulnerabilities, siphoning off oil and wrecking infrastructure as they wage their own wars.
In Libya, the fight for oil is a tug of war, with armed groups seizing control of facilities as they scramble for dominance. Like waves crashing against a rocky shore, the Libyan government’s attempts to regain control are persistent yet often ineffective, splintered by internal divisions. Further afield in Colombia, guerrilla groups like the National Liberation Army (ELN) treat oil pipelines as battlegrounds, attacking infrastructure to fund their insurgency. The Colombian government responds with force, but the battle, like many others, rages on.
Even Russia and Indonesia, with their sprawling landscapes and vast oil reserves, find themselves ensnared by this global malaise. Criminal gangs in Russia’s remote Siberian wilderness tap pipelines with impunity, while in Indonesia, the lush forests conceal a web of illegal siphoning operations. Both nations, like others, have tried to tighten the noose with surveillance and security patrols, but corruption and the vastness of their territories make control difficult.

Nigeria’s Battle: From Crisis to Recovery

Back in Nigeria, the war on oil theft has followed a winding, tortuous path, with victories fleeting and losses monumental. During the Buhari administration, the government initially refused to continue the contract with Tompolo’s Tantita Security outfit, a move that proved disastrous. This decision was akin to abandoning a fort in the midst of an invasion. Oil theft surged, and production plummeted to a dismal 790,000 barrels per day (bpd). The nation, once a giant in the oil market, found itself limping, crippled by its own vulnerability.
But the story didn’t end there. Realising the gravity of the situation, the Buhari administration had a change of heart and re-awarded the contract to Tantita. Like a knight returning to a besieged castle, Tompolo’s team rode back into the fray, spearheading a recovery. Oil production climbed to 1.3 million bpd, marking the beginning of Nigeria’s ascent from the abyss.
This resurgence under the Mele Kyari leadership of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC Ltd) was further bolstered in year 2022 by a new weapon in Nigeria’s arsenal: technology. The deployment of a sophisticated Digital Intelligence Platform became the country’s eye in the sky, monitoring the labyrinthine Niger Delta region and its web of creeks where much of the illicit activity took place. The platform acted like a spider at the centre of a vast network, sensing disturbances and relaying real-time intelligence to various security agencies. Information flowed seamlessly to the Department of State Services (DSS), National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Nigerian Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and private security contractors like Tantita and Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria (PIN).
With all eyes on the creeks, Nigeria’s defences grew stronger, and NNPC Ltd began to regain control of its assets. Production steadily climbed, and as of now, oil output has reached nearly 1.8 million bpd—an improvement that signals hope, though the battle is far from won.
Despite these gains, there remains an unsettling truth: much of the oil being stolen in Nigeria is still not properly documented. Like a hidden illness festering beneath the surface, the full extent of the theft is unknown. The losses are likely far greater than official figures suggest, leaving a gaping wound in the nation’s economy.

Lessons from Global Struggles

Globally, the fight against oil theft and pipeline vandalism is a protracted one. Countries facing similar challenges have tried a range of strategies, from military crackdowns and increased security patrols to advanced surveillance technology and international cooperation. However, Nigeria’s situation remains unique due to the complexity of the Niger Delta region—a tangle of waterways and jungle that provides perfect cover for illicit operations—and the sheer scale of the problem.
For instance, Mexico’s reliance on military interventions has seen limited success, hampered by corruption within the security forces themselves. In Venezuela, the government’s weakened state has left it unable to effectively combat oil theft, while Iraq and Libya struggle to protect their oil resources amid ongoing conflicts. Nigeria, by contrast, has shown that a combination of technology and local knowledge—through partnerships with former militants like Tompolo—can yield results, though sustaining these gains requires constant innovation and stronger governance.

The Road Ahead: Nigeria’s Quest for Stability

Nigeria’s oil production, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, has clawed its way back from the depths. But the journey is far from over. The federal government’s continued reliance on Tompolo’s militants and advanced surveillance technology has yielded success, yet these measures are not without controversy. The question remains: how can Nigeria ensure that this fragile recovery doesn’t unravel?
Crude oil remains the heart that pumps life into Nigeria’s economy, providing up to 80 percent of foreign exchange earnings and nearly 70 percent of the annual budget. But like any heart under constant strain, it needs care and protection. The federal government, in collaboration with state governments, must continue to tackle the issue of oil theft with a renewed sense of urgency, drawing lessons from global counterparts while refining its own approach. Failure is not an option—the stakes are simply too high.

An Economy Haemorrhaging: The Costs of Inaction

The scale of Nigeria’s losses to oil theft is staggering, yet it may be only the tip of the iceberg. National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu recently disclosed that the country loses approximately 400,000 bpd to oil theft. Former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Timipre Sylva estimated that Nigeria lost at least 700,000 bpd to thieves in 2022 alone—a situation unparalleled by other oil-producing nations like Venezuela, Iraq, Mexico, and Malaysia. And yet, many of these stolen barrels remain undocumented, slipping through the cracks like grains of sand in an hourglass. The full scale of the problem is likely far greater than official records indicate, leaving a yawning chasm in the nation’s finances.
In October last year, the Nigerian Senate reported that the country lost N2.3 trillion to crude oil theft. But this figure, alarming as it is, is likely a conservative estimate. The shadow economy of oil theft operates in the dark, beyond the reach of formal accounting, and its impact is felt far and wide.
As Nigeria continues to bleed, the call for a decisive and comprehensive solution grows louder. If the country can regain full control of its oil resources, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC Ltd) could potentially produce no less than 3 million (three million) barrels per day, breathing new life into the economy. Such an achievement would be nothing short of transformative, a beacon of hope in a landscape scarred by years of theft and loss. With the right mix of vigilance, innovation, and resolve, Nigeria can emerge victorious, restoring stability and prosperity to its citizens.

Lemmy Ughegbe, Ph.D. writes from Abuja
lemmyughegbeofficial@gmail.com
+2348069716645

By Ehichioya Ezomon

Rice – the most popular Nigerian staple food – has suddenly become an issue, and may contribute to futher scrambling of the campaign of the Edo State chapter of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that’s already reeling from months of defection of high-profile members to the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), ahead of the September 21, 2024, governorship election. 
This follows the reported discovery of thousands of bags of rice hoarded and warehoused in residences or property of alleged chieftains of the PDP in Benin City, the state capital city. As claimed by the “discoverers,” the rice was part of the 20 truckloads,  which the Federal Government donated to each of the 36 States of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, for free distribution to the most vulnerable members of the society, to alleviate the hardship they’ve faced due to high cost of living and food inflation.
  Because the PDP-led administration of Governor Godwin Obaseki allegedly didn’t distribute the rice to the people – even as the government initially denied receipt of the 20 trucks – the commodity has become an instant campaign matter against the election of the PDP governorship candidate, Dr Asue Ighodalo, who Obaseki “anointed” to succeed him in November 2024. 
To get a proper handle on this story, let’s compare how Borno State Governor Babagana Umara Zulum and his Edo State counterpart, Godwin Obaseki, handled the 20 trucks of rice, respectively. On Saturday, July 27, 2024, Prof. Zulum didn’t only demonstrate his leadership by example, but also the need for cooperation and synergy between the federal and state governments, to meeting the basic needs of the masses, especially in these economically-difficult times in Nigeria.
The governor – scheduled the next day to oversee the distribution of food palliatives and farm inputs donated by the Federal Government to the state – travelled to Monguno, one of the local government areas in North-East of Nigeria, which’s suffered years of bloody and destructive attacks by Boko Haram and other insurgent groups. 
As is the modus operandi of the popular governor – who mingles freely with Borno inhabitants, to feel their pulse and their pains – he moved a day ahead of commencement of distribution of the food and farming palliatives on July 28, to enable him profile the beneficiaries in super camps in Monguno town.
Addressing the palliative recipients on D-Day, Zulum said: “We are in Monguno town mainly for two functions, first to distribute food items provided to the government of Borno State by the federal government. I want to acknowledge the receipt of 20 trucks of rice, and this morning, we distributed all of them to this community.
“I want also to inform you that the federal government has provided 90 trucks of fertiliser to the state government for free, to distribute to our farmers. On behalf of the people and government of Borno State, I want to appreciate the support of the federal government and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to the deserving communities. This is not the first time Borno has received palliatives from the federal government. It is a continuous affair.
“In addition to this, we have distributed seeds, as most of them (farmers) do not have the capacity to buy farm inputs, and we have distributed cowpeas to all the able heads of households (each of the 35,000 beneficiaries received one bag of 25kg of rice and cowpeas to enable them cultivate their farmlands).”
The Zulum administration complemented the federal government’s gesture with its own palliatives. “We have also distributed N10,000 in cash support and a wrapper to each of the over 45,000 widows and vulnerable women in Monguno town,” Zulum said, noting that the distribution of palliatives by his government wasn’t meant to create dependency but to “support vulnerable families that have lost their sources of livelihood to the Boko Haram crisis facing Borno State.”
Now, we take a diagonal trip of over 1,000km down south to Edo State in the South-South of Nigeria, to see how the Obaseki administration handled the hardship problem regarding the federal government rice donation.
In stark contrast to the Borno scenario, trending in the Edo polity – and on mainstream and social media – is a series of posers: “Obaseki & Asue, where are our 20 trucks of rice given by the Federal Government?” “Where are 30,000 bags of rice donated by Dangote?” (Reference to Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group and the Richest Man in Africa)
These posers were triggered by the viral videos of angry and hungry Edolites, who looted thousands of bags of rice reportedly donated by the Federal Government to Edo people, but were allegedly hoarded and warehoused in residences or property of chieftains of the PDP in Benin City, and across the state.
That’s why concerned Edolites tagged Obaseki and Ighodalo to the rice “scandal” inundating the Obaseki government since the Bola Tinubu administration revealed its donation of 20 trucks of rice, and other food and farming products to each of the 36 States and the FCT, to ameliorate the hardship and food crisis across Nigeria.
While several states, including Borno, had admitted receiving the federal government food and farming consignments, many, like Edo, denied any knowledge, and/or receipt of the largesse, resulting in a war of words between the Edo chapter of the APC and the PDP-controlled state government. 
The controversy started when Obaseki claimed that his administration, for several months, had spent N1bn monthly to supply food palliatives to Edo people, who, disclaimed off-handedly the governor’s unsubstantiated assertion. Notably, the said N1bn monthly palliatives came on the heels of the initial federal government reported allocation of five trucks of rice, and N5bn to enable each of the 36 States and the FCT to purchase more grains and other food items for distribution to their people.
Some state governments – which’d denied receipt of the rice and N5bn – recanted, claiming that the N5bn wasn’t a grant but a loan from the federal government. Then came the instant 20 trucks of rice to the states and the FCT, with many states keeping mum, and Edo and Oyo publicity dismissing the federal government statement – even buttressed in the August 1, 2024, national broadcast by President Tinubu, while appealing to Nigerian youths to shelve the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protest that’s billed to commence the same day and end on August 10. 
But on the first day of the 10-day #EndHunger protest, demonstrators in Edo discovered – and looted – thousands of bags of rice stored in several residences of alleged members of the PDP at Urora community, Ikpoba Hill area of Benin City. The state government, through its Commissioner for Communication, Chris Nehikhare, quickly dismissed the claim by the “rice looters” and the APC state chapter – that it’s the the federal government rice donated to Edo State.
As reported by the online news portal, GWG.COM,  the Edo State chairman of the APC, Jarrett Tenebe, accused the Governor Obaseki government of “stockpiling the rice sent by the federal government as palliative for political use ahead of and during the forthcoming governorship election.”
(Recall that the APC and informed inhabitants of Edo State made a similar allegation against Obaseki during the September 2020 governorship poll: That he hoarded – for his re-election bid – the COVID-19 palliatives donated by then-President Muhammadu Buhari administration to Edo State, for distribution to the most impacted by the effects of the pandemic.) 
At a press conference on Thursday, August 1, “to celebrate what he described as a shame of the Obaseki administration in hiding palliative rice from the people,” Mr Tenebe said: “He (Obaseki) has announced also that each month that his PDP government spends N1 billion for purchase of rice.”
“If Edo (people) were ever in doubt, the video that emerged on social media today (August 1) of an abandoned trailer load of repackaged Federal Government rice with Edo State Government inscription, discovered by Urora residents, has exposed Obaseki’s deliberate plan to deprive Edo people the different palliative measures of the Federal Government.”
But in a statement, Mr Nehikhare attempted to spin the rice “discovery” as an APC stunt to smear the image of the Governor Obaseki, his government and the PDP, claiming that, “the government does not have any store in the Urora community and that it only distributes palliatives through religious bodies.”
“The State Government does not keep any relief material by itself but reaches out to the people through these channels,” Nehikhare said. “We will not put this tactic past the All Progressives Congress, APC, which is spreading malicious content to score cheap political points. This condemnable action is intended to cause chaos in the state and the APC is discouraged from such ignoble practice.”
Yet, confronted in a Channels TV programme, following #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protest, Nehikhare confirmed that the Edo government actually received “trucks of rice” from the federal government, without stating how many trucks, and how the rice was distributed to vulnerable members of the Edo public. 
While the rice saga has reinforced opposition’s scrutiny of and referendum on the eight-year tenure of Governor Obaseki, the owners and residents of the premises allegedly used to warehouse the commodity – for rebagging into smaller kilograms, and inscribed with the “Edo State Government,” for onward distribution and/or sale to party members – are counting their losses to the angry mob, who looted the rice and vandalised the property, accordingly.
“The discovery of the unattended-to truck (of rice at Urora community in Benin City on August 1) led to a frenzy, as the truck was completely looted. A house in the community, where it (rice) was also being housed, was looted, and adjoining houses to the flat accommodating the rice suffered collateral damage, as they were raided and looted by the rice raiders,” the GWG.COM reported on August 4.
“Like others in the buildings which were destroyed by the ‘rice looters,’ a resident, Charles Omoaka, has become a collateral victim of the people’s wrath on the political class. In an interview, he lamented that he, like many others, ‘does not know where to put his head after the angry protesters went beyond rice to also ransack their homes and took away even the roof over their houses.”
In saner climes, those, who by their actions instigated the rice heist – which prompted the looting spree, and destruction of property, rendering the residents “homeless” – would be held to account through legal means or via the ballot, which, in the case of the “rice scandal” in Edo State, is barely one month away on September 21, 2024. 
Will Edo voters look beyond partisan and sectional streak, and do right by all Edolites allegedly shortchanged in the distribution of the palliatives donated by the federal government? The answer to this crucial and critical question resides on Election Day!

Mr Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria