By Biodun Busari
The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) has urged President Bola Tinubu to make more clarifications on how he intends to distribute N500 billion palliatives among Nigerians.
Tinubu has asked the National Assembly to approve the N500 billion to be used as palliatives to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.
While CACOL said it was not against the palliatives, it affirmed that there should be a detailed information on the President wants to distribute it among the Nigerian people.
The anti-graft group made this known in a press statement signed by its Director, Administration and Programmes, Tola Oresanwo.
It read that Debo Adeniran, CACOL’s Chairman, noted, “We believe Nigerians need to know more about the N500bn the President is requesting. He should make the details of how the money would be spent more clearly to the average Nigerian.
“Inasmuch as we are not against the provision of palliatives for Nigerians who have been negatively affected by the removal of the fuel subsidy, we are calling on the President to reveal the details of how the money will be spent”.
It further asserted that, “In a country where a humongous amount of money had been expended in the past years majorly on palliatives and the low number of people that benefitted from the said palliatives, it will be unthinkable for this administration to follow the part of the past administrations.
“We are all living witnesses to the way and manner some foodstuffs that were meant to serve as palliatives for Nigerians were locked up in warehouses across the country by some greedy and selfish people in power at the detriment of pauperized, traumatized and famished Nigerians during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“To avoid the mistakes of the past administrations, the Tinubu-led government should publicize how it intends to spend the money, the names and locations of the beneficiaries, the modalities for disbursing the money and the conditions attached to the disbursement (if any), and other details that would set the minds of Nigerians at peace knowing fully well that the money would be used as planned”.
The CACOL boss added, “Moreover, we observe that even if the names of those to benefit in the conditional cash transfer or whatever method the government wants to use to disburse the N500bn are published, the money may not impact significantly on the livelihood of the beneficiaries.
“If any palliative would be given, it should reflect in the cost of macro-economic products like petroleum but since the argument is that if petroleum is cheaper, it will be smuggled out of the country, then the palliative can be used to subsidize electricity, since it is not likely that electricity would be smuggled out of the country.
“It can also be used to subsidize the cost of building materials or telephony thereby having a direct impact on affordable housing and communication among the people.
“Reduction in prices of these products will affect everybody rather than selective conditional transfer to some privileged few that has been done in the past and nobody has openly acknowledged that it impacted positively on their lives”.
Source: Vanguard