Johannesburg - Kaduna State, Nigeria, has reported one death after hundreds of people broke into the Covid-19 palliatives warehouse of the Kaura Local Council in Kagoro.
According to the Nigerian Guardian, council secretary Sunday Tibishi confirmed the death on Tuesday.
The newspaper reported that the deceased, identified as Esther Mba, was trampled to death after security personnel opened fire on the looters on Monday evening. No arrests have been made.
On Tuesday, Kogi State governor Yahaya Bello said during an interview with Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme that the protests were sponsored by politicians who were hell-bent on destabilising the country ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The governor said the looting of Coalition Against Covid-19 (CACovid) palliatives in the state was also the handiwork of politicians.
Bello added that the palliatives were hoarded in some states on the instruction of CACovid.
Meanwhile, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has urged citizens to turn away family members who return home with goods unaccounted for.
According to a statement issued by his spokesperson Garba Shehu on Sunday, Buhari said looting and vandalism would damage trade and investment growth in the country, both large and small industries, as well as the hard-working people in the informal sectors of the economy.
“These incidents do not reflect well on any society. They are wrong and condemnable and should not be supported by reasonable members of society.”
The government “will not fold its arms when an otherwise legitimate and peaceful protest (#EndSARS) is turning into free-for-all vandalism and looting,” he said.
African News Agency (ANA)