Tension has risen in Osogbo, Osun State, after operators of a cheap-food initiative, Global Food Initiative, reportedly disappeared with residents’ payments for subsidised food items.

Many residents who had paid into the scheme gathered at the organisation’s office in the Odi-Olowo area on Monday, expecting to collect food items they had ordered.

One resident, identified as Mistura, said she paid N300,000 last Wednesday for 11 bags of rice at N27,000 per bag. She said the rice would have cost about N605,000 at the prevailing market price of N55,000 per bag.

Another investor, Olamide, said she paid N1.2 million for various food items intended for her stepdaughter’s wedding.

She said she had previously collected two five-litre containers of groundnut oil after paying N30,000 for each, but became stranded after finding the operators absent when she arrived at their office.

Another investor, who spoke anonymously, said the scheme began operating more than three weeks ago and had told participants that it would run for six months.

She said a warning by a private radio presenter in Osogbo on Sunday caused panic among participants, leading a large crowd to storm the organisation’s office on Monday.

According to her, some investors had deposited significantly larger amounts, including one woman who reportedly paid N35 million and another man who presented a receipt for N10 million.

She added that some hoodlums attempted to break into the organisation’s storeroom, but police officers were deployed to prevent the situation from escalating.

The Osun State Police Command confirmed that its personnel had been deployed to the location to prevent a breakdown of law and order.

The command’s spokesperson, Abiodun Ojelabi, said no formal complaint had been received from the affected residents at the time of his response.

He said police officers at the scene discovered that Global Food Initiative had been collecting advance payments from residents in exchange for promises to supply food items at subsidised prices.

Ojelabi said the police were monitoring the situation and awaiting detailed information from those affected.

The incident has left several residents concerned about recovering their money and food orders, while the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the scheme’s operators remain under police observation.