Our reporter/ The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, on Wednesday called out President Bola Tinubu for spending N3 billion on verification of poor citizens’ national register.
The former Anambra state governor, who voiced his displeasure with the expenditure in a series of posts on X (formerly known as Twitter), said that such wasteful spending was the reason Nigeria must take urgent actions to cut the cost of governance.
“It is very surprising to hear that the sum of N3 billion was approved for verification of national register of the poor,” Obi said.
“This can only happen in Nigeria. I have maintained that we must decisively deal with the issue of cost of governance in Nigeria now as a matter of urgency.”
Mr Obi argued that N3 billion would go a long way in alleviating poverty alleviation rather than spending it on verification of national register of poor citizens.
“The same amount would have made a significant impact if prudently and transparently managed. Moreso, with more than half of our population battling with absolute and multidimensional poverty, one wonders why such a huge sum was approved for just verification of national register of the poor, when the same amount could have been directed towards actual poverty alleviation. This approval raises a fundamental question: how come the data for poverty alleviation has not been verified on a regular basis?,” Obi s further asked?.
Obi’s criticisms follow a leaked document granting approval to the humanitarian ministry to spend N3 billion for verification of national register of the poor from COVID palliative funds by Femi Gbajabiamila, the chief of staff to the President.
Amid public outrage over the leaked document, the presidency confirmed that the N3 billion was approved for the national register of the poor by President Bola Tinubu.
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