News - North Central - FCT
Updated: July 22, 2021

Buhari Legacy: Over N2bn N-Power Money Unaccounted For To Date

By Ridwan Yusuf
July 22, 2021
0

The Muhammadu Buhari administration prides the N-Power scheme which is targeted at youths, as one of its major achievements.

One year after disengaging N-Power batches A and B beneficiaries, the Muhammadu Buhari administration has still not paid the stipends of over 14, 200 ex-enrolees.

N-Power beneficiaries, numbering about 500, 000, were entitled to a monthly stipends of N30, 000 (an estimated 73 US Dollars). However, between the months of March and July 2020, many beneficiaries did not get paid, and despite their constant cries, the government has refused to settle their payment.

It is noteworthy that asides this general complaint, some former N-Power beneficiaries who use Wema Bank did not receive alert for June 2020.

The non-payment of 14, 200 N-Power Batches A and B beneficiaries means that the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, as well as the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, have failed to account for N2,130,000,000 (two billion, one hundred and thirty million naira).

In October, N-Power batches A and B beneficiaries with payment issues were asked to come for reverification, which they did. But as of the time of publishing this report, the government has still not paid them.

Sadiya Umar Farouq, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development made a false claim to the world in May that the government is not owing any backlog. But communication by this reporter with scores of genuine Batch A and B beneficiaries who are owed stipends, establish that they government is dishonest.

Nigerian government's N-Power scheme

N-Power is a scheme set up by President Muhammadu Buhari since 8 June 2016, "to address the issues of youth unemployment and help increase social development".

The scheme was created as a component of National Social Investment Programmes (NSIPs), "to provide a structure for large scale and relevant work skills acquisition and development and to ensure that each participant will learn and practice most of what is necessary to find or create work".

Applicants were selected and placed in several places known as primary place of assignment (PPA).