The 2023 presidential contender under Labour Party, Peter Obi, said that Nigerians are loosing their lives in quest for cheaper foods.
This came as about seven people were reportedly killed in Lagos State in a stampede over the struggle to buy custom’s rice at a cheaper rate.
In a satement on Monday, the former Anambra State Governor said that the government has been unable to address the burgeoning increase in the prices of food items in the country.
Obi claimed that the citizens of the country are “losing their lives” in their quest to get cheaper food as hunger persists across Nigeria.
He further highlighted that millions of Nigerians do not know where their next meal will come from, adding that “hardship, hunger and starvation is prevalent in the country.”
“Just yesterday, I read the saddening reports of how the search for cheap rice claimed the lives of some Nigerians in Lagos. According to the report, a massive crowd of hungry Nigerians had besieged the Zonal Office of the Nigerian Customs Service in Yaba, Lagos, to purchase the discounted 25kg bags of rice being offered by the Customs Service.
“In the course of the heavy stampede that ensued, some lives were lost. It is heartbreaking to think that despite all the wealth of our nation, Nigerians are losing their lives in their desperate quest to buy cheaper food in the face of the growing hunger and starvation in the country.
“This sad occurrence reflects the level of hardship, hunger, and starvation prevalent in the country.
“Today, we are one big nation united by hunger and starvation, to the point of dying to make ends meet,” he said.
