Chinelo Obogo
The N-Power Beneficiaries Forum has lauded the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq and President Muhammadu Buhari for what they describe as transparency in handling the scheme.
In a statement co-signed by the forum’s President, Okwu James and Secretary-General, Saaember Emmanuel, the forum said under Farouq’s supervision, thousands of Nigerian youths have benefited from the program with job training and education, as well as a monthly stipend of 30,000.
Introduced in 2015, N-Power is one of four National Social Investment Programs created by President Muhammadu Buhari’s adminstration to ensure a more equitable distribution of resources to vulnerable populations.
The forum said the scheme was taken new heights since Farouq’s appointment but that alleged that the exercise may be derailed by some groups who they say are out to malign the government.
The N-Power beneficiaries expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari and Farouq, first for the programme, which they said has improved their lives and the transition plan.
The forum alleges that it is aware of clandestine moves by some people to infiltrate the initiative sponsoring propaganda against the minister and urged the public to be cautious about anyone transacting business in the name of N- Power.
“Our attention has been drawn to a statement by persons that called themselves ‘36 States N-Power Representatives Forum’, a body not known to law and neither known to the hundreds of thousands N-Power beneficiaries. It is curious that the people behind the said statement neglected to properly identify themselves and merely signed a statement discussing a matter of such magnitude with the words “Best Regards”.
“In the statement was the threat to report the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq to President Muhammadu Buhari over the disengagement of beneficiaries of the N-Power programme as directed by the Federal Executive Council. These individuals went further to imply that they will cause mayhem by embarking on nationwide protests if their demands are not met.
“N- Power Nationwide Beneficiaries Forum want to categorically state that those behind these threats are not beneficiaries as they appear more like hirelings that were recruited with the objective of maligning the government. Anyone that has benefitted from the scheme for these past few years will not go around with such misplaced sense of entitlement but will rather be appreciative of the gift of being kept out of the pangs of poverty for the duration of the programme.
“It is well known among beneficiaries that those of us that have enjoyed the scheme is to be transitioned into government entrepreneurship programmes. This is a thing of joy for us because it means the government has given us the chance to expand our income and also become employers of labour as opposed to being dependent on handouts under a system that we all know is not sustainable. It is therefore absurd that anyone will be kicking against such an opportunity at becoming self-made, which gave us the impression that only lazy persons that are addicted to freebies would insist on remaining beneficiaries of a programme, whose monthly stipend has no prospect of ever-increasing.
“We are also pressed to correct the impression created by this group that N-Power beneficiaries are partisan, through the allusion that beneficiaries made President Buhari’s re-election possible. It is one thing to acknowledge that Nigerians who were impressed by the President’s programmes and massively voted for him and it is another thing to imply that N-Power beneficiaries are political thugs, which is an unacceptable insult to the hundreds of thousands of apolitical Nigerian youths benefitting from this laudable programme.
“We are pained that some people can come up with such a position that failed to properly understand that the economic pressure exerted by the COVID-19 pandemic is responsible for the decision to transit beneficiaries to entrepreneurship programmes. This in itself is an ingenious solution to a problem that would have stymied any other government, so the incumbent government should rather be acknowledged for its responsive thinking.
“We appreciate President Buhari, first for the N-Power programme, which many of us have used to improve on our lives and improve the lots of our families and for creating the transition arrangement, which will ensure that the diligent ones among beneficiaries will go places. We equally salute the transparency, which the Minister introduced into the system to usher in greater accountability and probity that made it possible for more Nigerians to be brought on board.
“Our forum is aware of clandestine moves by some elements to infiltrate the laudable initiative of the President by sponsoring propaganda against reforms and efforts to reposition the scheme. We consequently dissociate N-Power beneficiaries from such self-serving individuals while urging for caution for anyone transacting business in the name of N- Power as many miscreants are out to ruin the gains so far made by the scheme,” the group said.