Tension rose in Osogbo, Osun State, on Tuesday after angry residents broke into a warehouse operated by the Global Food Initiative and took away food items following the alleged disappearance of the scheme’s operators.
The incident occurred at the organisation’s office in the Odi-Olowo area, where residents had gathered after reportedly paying large sums for food commodities sold at prices below prevailing market rates.
The development followed unrest at the same location on Monday, when customers who had made payments waited for the operators to open but were left stranded.
One of the affected residents, Mistura, said she paid N300,000 last Wednesday for 11 bags of rice at N27,000 per bag.
She said customers were expected to receive their goods a week after payment, adding that the same quantity would have cost about N605,000 at the prevailing market price of N55,000 per bag.
Another customer, Olamide, said she deposited N1.2 million for various food items she intended to use for her stepdaughter’s wedding.
“I got here this morning and met a crowd waiting to be attended to, but the operators were nowhere to be found. I was warned, but I never thought they would run away this early,” she said.
The situation worsened on Tuesday as more customers returned to the premises, hoping the operators would resume operations or explain their absence.
The owner of the building reportedly appealed to the aggrieved residents to remain calm and allow security personnel to investigate the matter and identify the operators, while efforts were made to explore ways of recovering customers’ money.
The appeal failed to calm the crowd.
At about 4pm, some residents reportedly forced their way into the warehouse and began removing food items, including bags of rice, noodles and groundnut oil.
The heavy rain at the time did not deter the crowd, with residents continuing to move in and out of the warehouse carrying food products.
A small number of police officers at the scene reportedly struggled to control the situation as the crowd became increasingly agitated.
As of the time of filing the report, the looting was said to be ongoing, while security personnel were reportedly firing tear gas to disperse the crowd and restore order.