President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate release of food items from the strategic reserve to cushion the effect of hardship in the country.

Nigerians have been lamenting the rising cost of living, mounting pressure on the Federal Government to reverse the trend.

On Thursday, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced that the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security is to release about 42,000 metric tons of maize, millet, garri and other commodities in their strategic reserve.

Idris, told State House correspondents after a series of meetings of the Special Presidential Committee on Emergency Food Intervention at the Aso Rock Villa on Thursday, the decision was arrived at.

Idris said, “The first one is that the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has been directed to release about 42,000 metric tons of maize, millet, garri, and other commodities in their strategic reserve so that these items will be made available to Nigerians; 42,000 metric tons immediately.

“The second one is that we have held meetings with the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria. Those who are responsible for producing this rice and we have asked them to open up their stores.

“They’ve told us that they can guarantee about 60,000 metric tons of rice. This will be made available and we know that that is enough to take Nigerians the next one month to six weeks, perhaps up to two months.

“Now the government is also looking at the possibility, if it becomes absolutely necessary as an interim measure, to also import some of these commodities immediately so that these commodities can be made available to Nigerians immediately within the next couple of weeks.

“Now the whole idea of this is to crash the cost of these food items. And these are measures that will happen immediately. This is an emergency situation. Every nation faces emergency situations like this. It is not the first time that it has happened. Many countries of the world have faced this.

“It is our own time to face this challenge. Government is going to respond adequately and it is already responding adequately. The President has directed that whatever it will take, food will be available to Nigerians at a cost that is also very reasonable. And that is what the summary of this meeting entails.”

The organised Labour had issued a 14-day strike ultimatum to the Federal Government over the current economic crisis.

Daily Trust