N-power beneficiaries cry out over three-months unpaid stipends, despite minister’s promise to pay in 72 hours

SOME beneficiaries of the National Social Investment Programme, N-power, have cried out to the federal government over non-payment of their three-month-old salary.

The beneficiaries are asking the government to approve the payment of their March, April, and May stipends

This is coming after Sadiya Farouk, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development promised beneficiaries and the program monitors across the country last week Tuesday, that they would start receiving payments for the months of March and April within the next 72 hours.

The minister disclosed in a press statement that the delay in the payment of the beneficiaries and monitors was “due to the change in Government Policy of migration from the REMITA platform system to the GIFMIS system of payment which requires offloading the beneficiaries into the new system before finally uploading, reviewing and final payment by the Social Investment Programme (SIP).”

N-Power is a youth empowerment scheme sponsored by the Federal Government of Nigeria under the Social Investment Program (SIP) with 500,000 enrollees across the country. Other programs under the program include Home Grown School Feeding, Tradermoni, Marketmoni and the Conditional Cash Transfer in the 36 states of the country.

Beneficiaries starving, dodging their landlords

However, hundreds of tweets and comments from over two hundred and fifty beneficiaries seen by The ICIR show that the promise made by Farouk has not been fulfilled a week after.

Beneficiaries now complain of the difficulty of meeting their needs. Someone said he has “turned to a thief in the night who sneaks in and out of the house” just to avoid his creditors.

A beneficiary from Plateau State, Samuel Bangudu, a father of four, said the situation has been “awful” for him in the last three months. He said his wife lost her job which makes things more difficult for the family.

Bangudu sounded distraught on Monday while speaking to The ICIR. “How I wish you can see my four children at the moment sharing the remaining cups of Gaari in the house. I have not eaten today the same as their mother. We are really pushed to the wall.”

He said the family’s condition was exacerbated by the lockdown order because nobody was even willing to borrow him money.

“My rent has expired since the 20th of March, and I have been avoiding my landlord,” he said.

Similarly, Habibu Isa from Katsina State told The ICIR that the lockdown has exposed him and his family to the worst embarrassment of their lives. he said he no longer could take anything on credit he is owing many people.

“They are all tired of borrowing me money. The food sellers here are no more willing to help me again to buy on credit, I can not continue like this any longer. Pls help us talk to the government”

Another beneficiary of the scheme, Ogunmodede Oladeji, said he has been broke to the point that he contemplated suicide. “I am currently indebted to some money lenders like Opay, FairMoney, Branch, Carbon Paylater, SEAP microfinance bank, and others”. He told The ICIR that he no longer can walk freely on the street.

READ MORE: https://www.icirnigeria.org/n-power-beneficiaries-cry-out-over-three-months-unpaid-stipends-despite-ministers-promise-to-pay-in-72-hours/