N-Power Program Suspended as FG Launches Probe into Past Administrators
ABUJA, (iexclusivenews) – The federal government has announced the suspension of the N-Power program, a social intervention initiative that provides work-for-cash opportunities for young Nigerians.
The suspension is to pave way for an investigation into the operations of the program in the last twelve months, according to a statement issued on Sunday by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
N-Power is Nigeria’s flagship social assistance program that was launched in 2016 by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
The program aims to provide skills and employment opportunities for young Nigerians in four key sectors: agriculture, health, education, and tax.
The program has enrolled about 960,000 people since its inception, most of whom have exited from N-Power 1.0 and N-Power 2.0 batch A and B.
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The suspension of the N-Power program is to allow for a detailed investigation into the operations of the program in the last twelve months, the humanitarian ministry said.
The ministry said it discovered instances of irregularities and corruption in the programme, such as:
– Beneficiaries whose participation has lapsed since 2022 but have remained on and continue to expect payments from the government.
– Beneficiaries who do not report to their places of primary assignments as required but still receive monthly payments.
– Beneficiaries who have other jobs and have left this bracket but are still benefiting from the payments, while those who truly worked are not paid.
– Consultants who are holding on to beneficiaries’ funds disbursed to them long ago, even when their contract ended in March 2023 without any renewal.
The ministry said it needs to audit the number of people in the program, those who have exited the program, those who are being owed, whether they reported to work or not and how funds have been utilised over this period of time.
The ministry also said it wants to verify the claims of those being owed for up to eight to nine months’ stipends and establish the exact number of people owed and the total amounts, thereby eliminating ghost beneficiaries.
The suspension and investigation of the N-Power program comes after a report by Peoples Gazette last month that exposed the irregularities perpetrated by administrators of the program in the last administration.
The report urged the new humanitarian minister, Beta Edu, to probe the activities of her predecessor, Sadiya Farouq, whose time experts say was rife with irregularities and grand corruption.
The federal government has appealed to Nigerians to understand the rationale behind the temporary suspension and investigation of the program as it works to restore the nation’s confidence in the program and for the new N-Power to serve its intended purpose.
The government said it is committed to ensuring that the program delivers on its objectives of providing skills and employment opportunities for young Nigerians in a transparent and accountable manner.
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