Beneficiaries of YouWin 3 programme numbering about 1,500 in Nigeria have threatened to paralyze government activities at the Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja should the Ministry fail to pay them the second tranche of funds within 14 days .The members said they intend to occupy the ministry and embark on hunger strike afterwards.
YouWin was introduced by the Nigeria Federal Government as a youth enterprise programme to tackle unemployment.The programmed was supervised by the Ministry of Finance.
In a press statement distributed to media practitioners Tuesday, the awardees as observed by Newsdiaryonline, have issued a fourteen-day ultimatum to the Ministry to act fast or be forced to face the anger of the awardees from the entire states of the country as well as the Federal Capital Territory.
The release which was signed by  Adindueme Hans, also pleaded with the relevant authorities to call to order the persons assigned with the mandate of paying the awardees the remaining parts of their second and third tranches.
Should the Ministry continue to drag its feet, the awardees said, they would be left with no any other alternative than to embark on massive protest to the ministry, the situation, which they believe would further batter the image of Nigeria before the International community.
According to the press statement ?if within 14 days of these press release and the government fails to effect payments, we will have no choice but to call all 1,500 Youwin 3 awardees and the wider Youths of Nigeria for a Public Protest during which we shall Occupy Federal Ministry of Finance and engage in a hunger strike until we get results, because we will never allow our businesses to fail and we have chosen to fight for over 4,500 workers and their families currently working with us.
The third edition of the said program, as observed by Newsdiaryonline, commenced in 2013, and more than 1,500 youths were selected for the program after engaging in a very long and rigrious business plan competition and coming out as the best business palnners from over 200,000 competitors across Nigeria.The Federal government subsequently commenced disbursements in January 2015 after signing legal agreements with awardees at the Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja.
The awardees have called on President Muhammadu Buhari, Minister of Finance and the Central Bank {CBN} Governor to intervene by directing those assigned with the responsibility of paying them to as a matter of urgency commence the disbursement of the funds to savetheir businesses from collapsing.
Part of the statement reads ; we fervently call on President Muhammadu Buhari, The Minister of Finance and the Central Bank Governor to urgently intervene in this matter and get the TSA issues urgently resolved to save over 1,500 businesses from imminent collapse. Government must not allow our businesses to fail as we are partners in efforts to reduce youth unemployment.
We call on the World Bank and the Department for International Development (DFID) who are partners and funders of the Youwin Program to urgently intervene in this matter and save our businesses from collapsing.
They also went ahead to call on labour and the organized private sector to urgently intervene including civil society organization to also intervene to save our future and the protection of jobs in the local economy by prevailing on the Government to act to save our businesses. Should the Ministry fail to fulfill its obligation, the awardees in their statements said they would as well be forced to push into the unemployed markets the teeming youths that have been engaged by them.
The most painful aspect of this prolong delay is that most of the YouWiN! 3 awardees left their jobs, some even relocated in order to concentrate on YouWiN!project and create jobs which is the major problems facing the country, but only to be abandoned and left frustrated by the Nigerian government. This is not healthy for peoples' lives and businesses.
They stated that “if the remaining second and third tranches are not released without delay, Youwin awardees under the third edition of the program will have no option but to sack all or downsize their employees or close down their businesses entirely due to lack of funds.”
Admin, please forward this to front page ASAP in order to save thousands of lives and businesses across Nigeria. Thanks and God bless Nigeria .

oga this is change learn to leave with it.....after fighting corruption we can talk about youwin

I believe, it is high time, these guys are paid their funds.

Businessmen don't joke with time and money. Government should yield to their yearning promptly to save their business.

We Nigerian youths call upon the president and the minister of finance to as a matter of urgency release the remaining tranches of Youwin 3 awardees. It will be anti development and against the youths of this great country if the government does not yield to their plea for the relaese of their remaining tranches. This is d most transparent programme organised in Nigeria that aam aware of. The youwin programme hve recorded over 80 percent success. The three people I know in my locality ar doing greatly. We can't take a step forward and 2 step backward in dis country.God bless Nigeria