Ogun state palliative bag
Ogun state CDA members and their bag of palliative from state govt
By Tunde Abatan
There is no doubt about the fact that Nigeria is a country of one day one trouble. For every crisis in the country and its management there is always a problem to be resolved either through the faulty system of administration or the inherent weaknesses in the system which itself has made problem solving and approach a problem and crisis of its own.
Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic and the issue of handling the crisis itself,it has been one problem or the other which all borders on faulty steps and misapplication of resources to solve the problem.
It is worthy of note that at the beginning of debates over what should be the approach to giving palliatives to Nigerians on possible shutdown of the nation to stem the spread of the pandemic, Atiku Abubakar,Nigeria’s former vice president, suggested the adoption and use of the Bank Verification Number (BVN) as a means of sending cash to Nigerians to buy daily needs and foodstuff in readiness for a lockdown.
However,while some questioned the ability of the BVN to reach Nigerians who have no bank accounts ,mostly in the Northern parts of the country,the Federal government through Minister for Humanitarian Affairs,Disaster Management and Social Development,Sara Umar-Farouk last week announced that the Federal government through her office, have started distributing N20,000 each to each vulnerable Nigerian captured under the Conditional Cash Transfer system.this he said would be done all over the country in the next four months.Within two days last week,she said N3billion have been disbursed within Kwali Area Council in Abuja,the federal capital territory.
Said he, “we have directed immediate cash transfer to the poorest and most vulnerable in the country and this will be done throughout the country in the next four months”.
She disclosed that her ministry has identified 10,695,360 individuals in 35 states of the country as the poorest and most vulnerable Nigerians.
But then Nigerians are asking wheat modality was used in determining the most vulnerable people especially since the system was used shortly before the 2019 general elections to distribute money to traders under the Trader moni scheme..easily touted as the ruling party’s ,the All Peoples Congress(APC) ,way of compensating its members or vote catching device.
Reactions have trailed this practise which came into effect few days after the President Muhammad Buharis speech and few days before the federal government lockdown of Abuja,Ogun and Lagos states.
As for a group The better Nigerian,it believes the ministry should provide a detailed account of the areas reached by it in disbursing the N3billion adding,” it will be unfair to think that only the northern part of the country have poor and vulnerable households’.
In the same vein,Hausa El-Yakub declared,”I am a rural development expert who has been working with rural poor for more than 17 years and I can categorically tell you that you have not captured the poor I know in Northern Nigeria because most of them don’t even have bank accounts. Please don’t get me upset”.he told newsmen in reaction to the ministers claim.
If she is correct,then who are the beneficiaries in the Kwari local government who received the humongous amount.If the 3billion is shared at the rate of 20,000 naira per household,it means within the local government,150,000 people have collected the money within 2 days. Where are the people within this local government which is not inclusive of Abuja municipality.?
Besides,President Buhari also last week asked the Customs department to distribute the contents of the 150 trucks of rice seized from smugglers of the banned essential commodity now the stable food in most Nigerian homes among the citizenry.
How this would be done in a country without acceptable and reliable data is yet to be explained by the humanitarian affairs minister.
In Lagos state, reputed to have had a headstart in its programme to reduce the spread of the raging disease,Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu launched a relief package which in his wrote,is targeted at 200,000 households within the states estimated 20milkion population busting at its steam.
In the first phase,he intends to cover ten out the the states 20 local governments namely,Amuwo Odofin,Epe,Ikeja,Badagry and Ibeju -Lekki.
Others are,Agege, Oshodi-Isolo,Apapa,Lagos mainland.
But as I write the exercise which started last week few days to the states shutdown was marred by complaints of irregularities by citizens.they accused those implementing the distribution of relief package of diverting same to politicians,friends family and associates.
A resident of Ojokoro,a suburb of Agege in Lagos who choose to remain anonymous declared angrily,”Politicians have hijacked it in Lagos it’s only party members they are given”.
Apparently in reaction to the faulty distribution system in Lagos unknown youths burgle the office of the local council chairman of Oke-Odo local council development area situated opposite Jubilees housing estate, and made away with COVID-19 relief materials.
A frustrated resident declared,”how can some few people decide to take laws into their hands and cart away food that is meant for the area?Who loses,government or the people, he asked rhetorically.
But if Lagos residents are complaining, Ogun citizens complaint is much louder and defeating.
It will be recalled that Ogun state governor,Dapo Abiodun,apparently following his Lagos counter part,Babajide Sanwoolu announced rather gleefully that his administration will supply palliatives in form of food materials to 500,000 households in the state and to achieve this,he constitued the chairmen of the states 20 local governments unto a task force and also to head the committee to distribute the bag of 5kg rice using the states community development associations.
Yet,like the initiatives of the FG and Lagos states,the exercise was greeted with complaints galore signalling a failure of a system in a state that has no reliable data to work with but officials with itching hands.
For instance, in the Ifesowapo/Arigbabu CDA in Ado odo/Ota council area,consisting 110 houses were given a bad of 5kg contains rice ,gari and other food items.Martins Adewale one of its officers told Newdawnngr,”the CDA executives are displeased and decided to post it on Facebook for all to see.we have 110 houses and a lot of tenants who are daily paid workers.what do you do with this.very insultiving”he declared.
In same vein,Ilupeju-Joju CDA comprising 5 streets of about 90 buildings also got a bag containing 5kg rice.”we are confused as to what to do with this”.this is disgusting,remarked Femi Oluniyi one of the CDAs executives.
If the above residents are disgusted,executives of Mercy CDA in Ifo local government are at a loss as to what to do with a bag of 5kg among its 100 houses and many house-holds.As at the time of filling this report,they are undecided on how to identify the poor and vulnerable among them.
Although,the Ogun state governor,said the items distributed is the first phase, the question been asked is of what use is the items for a household of poor that depended on daily earnings for 14 days of lockdown?
It is mind boggling that two neighbouring states with metropolitan population and sharing the same border could not fashion out a lasting policy considering the multiplier effects on lockdown on a citizenry which population are largely self employed and its security implications.
How does Ogun state which has only two ill- equipped police stations in it’s border area of a 20 million population cope with crime rate among the bursting youth and self employed during this period.
On the whole,both the federal and state government would’ve been sufficiently advised if they can use the ugly experience of this COVID-19 to prepare a reliable data through which it could handle similar situations in future rather that distributing relief materials with a faulty data been handled by officials and politicians with itching hands and disposition.
But is Nigeria’s government with its peculiar way of ethicizing and politicising sensitive and necessary issues like this especially its unreliable way of data gathering summon enough courage to do what is needful.
The COVID-19 presents the best opportunity for a government desirous of effecting Change and in so doing bring about the much needed development which absence of reliable data has prevented throughout the changing phases of our national development.
Disbursing money both through the BVN and a scientifically enumerated citizens without bank accounts remains the cost effective way of handling emergency situations.
States could do better by having its own reliable headcount which it could conveniently rely upon for effective planning for development and relative growth.
