The minister in May defended the federal government’s decision to spend N679 million on the programme
Sadiya Umar Farouk, the minister of humanitarian affairs and disaster management has been summoned by the Nigerian House of Representatives over COVID-19 funds.
According to a report by Daily Trust, Farouk was invited by the House committee on public accounts on Tuesday, June 9, to explain the disbursement of funds released by the COVID-19 Presidential Task Force to the ministry and its agencies.
The humanitarian affairs minister who asked to appear before the committee on Thursday, June 18, will also answer questions on the other schemes such as N-power and Social Investment Programme (SIP).
The committee on public accounts had kicked against the alleged refusal of N-power, Conditional Cash Transfer, Home Feeding Programme officers to appear before it to give the accounts of their financial activities.
Wole Oke, who serves as the committee’s chairman ordered the programme officers affected to appear physically before the committee alongside the minister. Oke noted that failure to appear before the committee would lead to a warrant of arrest issued against them.
The chairman went on to direct that the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF) appears to provide the audited performance report covering the expenditure of the agencies affected during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Meanwhile, the federal government has dismissed claims by critics who described the plan to feed school children at home as a scam.
The minister of disaster management, humanitarian affairs and social development on Thursday, May 21, defended the federal government’s decision to spend N679 million on the programme.
Speaking in Lagos at the lunch of the feeding programme, the minister gave two cogent reasons why the feeding school children cannot be described as a scam.
In other news, the stipends of N-Power beneficiaries for the month of April have been paid the minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management, and social development has said.
Farouk who disclosed this on Saturday, May 23, was quoted to have said the payments were made to N-Power beneficiaries from batch A and B after delays from the GIFMIS platform were rectified.
She was also reported to have said that payment for the month of May is being processed.
