THE Governor of Kaduna state, Uba Sani, has faulted the cash transfer policy of the Federal government, describing it a scam.
Sani said cash transfers should not be something to be talked about at this period.
The governor declared this while speaking on Arise Television’s News Night on Friday, July 21.
He said, “That cash transfer, in my opinion, is a scam. Completely is a scam. I can be very certain about that, because who are you transferring the money to?
“Let me give an example. Go and check the current statistics. As chairman of the Senate committee on Banking for four years, I oversight Central Bank, I oversight all the commercial sectors of our economy for the last four years, and I looked at the statistics.
“About 70 to 75 per cent of the rural population in North West are financially excluded completely.”
He urged that the people in the rural areas be captured in the scheme.
“We are talking about important people in the society. They do not even have bank accounts, so who are you transferring the money to?” he asked.
He called on development partners like the World Bank to put in more money towards bringing more people into the financial services and target the vulnerable.
“Let’s put more money to ensure that we open accounts for them, get them involved. If we don’t do that, no matter what we do and however you do it, money will go to the wrong people. That’s the fact,” the governor declared.
The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday, July 20, dumped the national social register used in the former president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for palliatives.
The council mentioned a lack of credibility as the reason for discarding it.
The decision was part of the outcome of the meeting by NEC members at the State House on palliatives for the people to ameliorate sufferings arising from the recent fuel subsidy removal.
The council, led by Vice President Kashim Shettima, advocated initiating a system for cash transfers to states based on their social records, as well as a six-month cash reward programme for public employees.
But NEC suggested that state governments undertake cash transfer programmes using state-generated social registers.
The council further suggested that the implementation be based on each state’s specific capacity and priority.
Meanwhile, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has urged the Federal government to implement policies and consider other options to lessen the economic impact of the fuel subsidy removal.
In a statement on Friday, July 21, CAN also appealed to Nigerians to “work together to build an economy that is inclusive, resilient, and offers opportunities for every Nigerian to thrive.”
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance