Politics
CIVIL Rights Advocacy Group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has emphasized that Nigerians are not in doubt that the President is good at making compassionate speeches, but the challenge is for the President to ensure that actions speak louder than words.
HURIWA stated that there have been many laudable promises made by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu aimed at assuaging the popular angst of millions of hungry, angry and impoverished citizens, but the group regretted that most of those noble ideas are still at the level of mere semantics since they are yet to become realities.
“The true test of the statesmanship and compassionate leadership, is the capacity of the leader to be able within the shortest possible time- frame, to turn his promises into realistic relief programmes to ameliorate the worsening economic hardships afflicting a vast majority of the citizens”.
HURIWA, in a media statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko criticised the indecision that characterised the promise by the President to give loans to indigent students even as the group said the postponement of the commencement of that idea after raising the hopes of many indigent students, is unfortunate.
The Rights group expressed disappointment at the postponement of the take off date for the students’ loan scheme, but said just like many of the other relief measures meant to alleviate the worsening economic status of millions of Nigerians, these promises are yet to materialised.
HURIWA recalled that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has just postponed the commencement of the Nigerian Student Loan Scheme indefinitely.
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, Mr Akintunde Sawyer confirmed this when he appeared on Arise Television on Tuesday.
Recall that in June 2023, President Tinubu okayed legislation to set up a Students Loan Fund, which would provide interest-free loans to Nigerians for higher education.
HURIWA recalled that Femi Gbajabiamila, former Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chief of Staff to the president introduced the law, which was expected to kick off between September and October 2023.
Meanwhile, Tinubu said the programme would begin in January 2024, after missing the October deadline.
However, barely 48 hours before the launch, Sawyer said the loan scheme was postponed due to some corrections that were being made around the launch.
“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to commit to a specific date. We are sort of waiting to ensure that all the stakeholders are aligned to make sure that nobody is blindsided, then we can actually roll this out in a meaningful, comprehensive, wholesome and sustainable way,” he said.
HURIWA is of the opinion that postponing the take-off of the students’ loan scheme is not in isolation just as many other compassionate speeches of the President have remained mere ‘sermons from Aso Rock villa.”
HURIWA recalled that days back, President Bola Tinubu directed an immediate release and distribution of a fresh round of grains and palliatives to residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to cushion the effect of the high cost of living due to fuel subsidy removal.
This was disclosed by the Minister of State for the FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud, on Wednesday, March 6, during an emergency meeting with stakeholders and Chairman of the 6 area councils of the FCT, Just as she said:
“Yesterday we received this letter from the Presidency through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and we all know that some few days ago we were at Gwagwa where our warehouses were attacked by some youths in that area and then all we have there has been packed including the roofing, the gates and everything, and machinery that we used to make some of the foods that we were keeping there.
“So along that way God Almighty has given us a solution, everybody knows how Mr President Bola Tinubu has been going up and down to see how he will cushion the hardship in the country, especially the issue of food security, we have been having meetings with the ministry of agriculture to get a lot that we have to distribute to people, to tell us how Mr. President has his in the heart.
“So along this way that the honourable minister of FCT, Barrister Nyesome Wike, was addressed through this letter to call an important meeting with important stakeholders that were highlighted, they are here to see that we arrange some committees for transparency in the distribution of these palliatives that we are about to get, and then the preparation that we need to have before these items are given to FCT for distribution.
“This is the reason that we called for this meeting, when we received the letter it said that it had to be handled in two weeks, so the two weeks from the day we received the letter, and we received this letter on the 29th of February, we have already taken one out of it, before the two weeks, FCT will be able to submit all that is required from us.”
The Rights group however lamented that it is not known how and when these relief materials are to be distributed because not a single grain of maize or rice has been received by FCT residents.
HURIWA said aside the fact that nobody known to anyone has received any of those grains in the FCT, it is also hheart-rending to note that the earliest promise by President to distribute grains massively to Nigerians is still mere media rhetoric.
HURIWA recalled that only last month, the Presidency revealed that the 42,000 metric tonnes of grains it promised for nationwide release two weeks ago are being bagged for distribution.
It added that the remaining 60,000 metric tonnes of grains would be purchased from the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed this in a statement he signed Friday night titled, ‘Update on Tinubu administration’s efforts to ramp up food supply in the country’.
As a temporary response to the nation’s growing food crisis and the rising price of commodities, President Bola Tinubu, on February 8, ordered the immediate release of 102,000 metric tons of various grain types from the Strategic Reserve and the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria.
Giving updates on the strategy, the Presidency said, “The Tinubu administration through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security is in the final stages of releasing 42,000 metric tonnes of assorted food commodities to support the vulnerable population across the country.”
“The grains in seven locations of strategic reserve are now being bagged for onward delivery to the National Emergency Management Agency.”
Explaining reasons for the delayed distribution, Onanuga stated, “The need to bag the grains, caused the delay as the bags were freshly ordered by government,” adding that, “Nigerians will not need to pay for the grain bags, as they are free.”
This will be complemented by the 60,000 metric tonnes of milled rice to be purchased by the Federal Government from the Mega Rice Millers, explained the Presidency.
HURIWA wondered how much longer it will take for the bagging of these grains which the President said are being bagged since ten days ago.
A.
-March 13, 2024 @ 18:25 GMT|
Tags: Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko HURIWA Mr Akintunde Sawyer
