Cooked food becomes hot commodity for thieves in Ilorin

A research carried out by Guardian Newspaper has revealed that theft of cooked food has become rampant in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State, occasioned by the biting hardship being experienced in the country owing to the economic recession.

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According to the research, cooking a pot of soup is now a sure invitation to thieves who lurk around people's premises waiting to pounce at the slightest opportunity as they swoop on the food anytime the owner becomes careless.

This is what the Guardian wrote on the situation:

"The incident (of food theft) is widespread in areas without perimeter fencing and among women who cook or have opted to cook with coal pots. At each of such areas such as Tanke, Basin, Sango, Offa Garage, and Kilanko, the incident occurred over five times in just a week.

According to at Sango, 'I was cooking around 5.00pm in readiness for the breaking of the fast for the day. It was beans and I decided to use coal pot at the open backyard.

I had added all the food condiments and was waiting for the broth to dry up. But to my greatest surprise, I did not see the pot of the beans again.

I was shocked discovering this. What amazed me was that the thief did not come for it before it was ready; he or she came when the food was ready and we were already salivating, meaning the person must have been closely monitoring me.'

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Another victim, an undergraduate of the University of Ilorin, Anita Bazuaye, said it was her pot of soup that disappeared beside her window.

'It was painful because as a student, it was difficult for me to get money again for another soup. In fact, when I managed to start cooking again, I did not leave the place until I had securely packed the pot inside my room.'

The Kwara State Police Command spokesman. ASP Ajayi Okasanmi, however, said that though no formal report of the various incident has been reported, it is still a serious matter and the police will not take it lightly with anyone caught in the act.

It has been noted that the development could not be divorced from the non-payment of workers' salaries in the state.

A former chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state, Emmanuel Ayeoribe, told the Guardian:

“If nothing is urgently done to commence regular payment of salaries, very soon, people will start leaping over the fence to steal food, not just from unfenced quarters.”