July 30, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government has urged Nigerians to approach some designated centres nationwide to purchase a 50kg bag of rice for N40,000.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who made this known to State House correspondents on Monday, said the initiative was part of efforts by the Tinubu administration to ease living conditions for citizens.
THEWILL reports that this is coming amid the planned ‘EndBadGovernance’ nationwide protest against the economic hardship in the country
Speaking with newsmen after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Idris said, “The position of the FEC is that most of the demands that the protesters are making are actually being addressed by the Federal Government and therefore, it is the view of the government that there is really no need for the protests again.
“Most of the things that the protesters are putting forward are already being addressed by the government. And like we have said repeatedly, this is a listening government.
“The President has listened to the voices of all planning this protest. And the message is that there is no need for it. Indeed, the President is already protesting on their behalf by doing what they want the government to do.
“For example, at the last Council meeting, we announced that 20 trucks had been given to each state governor for onward distribution to those who actually needed them, to the poorest of the poor in society.
“But the government did not stop. Rice is also being sold at about 50 percent of its cost; a bag of rice is being sold as we speak. This rice has been taken to various centres across all the states of the federation and is being sold at N40,000. Centres have been created so that those who need this rice can go there and buy this rice at N40,000.
“In the first instance, about 10 trucks have been made available to each of these states; indeed, this is just the beginning. I know that some of the comments you hear are that it is never enough. The government has not pretended that these supplies are indeed enough. But these are necessary first steps that are being made and more of such interventions are being made in the interim.
“Of course, this is like I said an interim measure because there is so much investment that is going into the agricultural sector. And the rainy season is here. We expect that the prices of food items will come down as investments are also being made not just for the traditional agricultural production, but also for the irrigation activities in many of these states in the federation.
“So, we expect that as we move forward, prices of food items, and commodities will, of course, come down.
“These are part of the measures, the president feels, and the federal executive council believes that already, some of the youth that want to protest, some of the answers that they are looking for are actually being provided.
“For example, only recently the federal government has begun the disbursement of student loans. There’s a provision already for over 2 million students. Only about 110,000 applications have thus far been received as of last week. Of course, more is going to come. So, there’s adequate provision for all those who are qualified, who can access these loans and who have fulfilled this condition.
“The desire of Mr President is that no student, no young person that has gained admission into any of our tertiary institutions will be left out because his parents or his guardian is unable to pay for his fees.
“But beyond that, there is also the provision that is being made for these young people. We are aware of the effort that is being made to ensure that about 3 million of them are being put into employment through the MTT programme.
“There is also for the general public the reduction that is envisaged by the time the CNG initiative of the federal government actually takes full course. Already, some of these buses have been imported. Some of the conversion kits are already available. The conversion centres are already beginning to get active.
“The delays are largely because you don’t just go to the market and get these things off the shelves.
“First the procurement processes have to be followed. And then of course you have to place an order for them and it is envisaged that as we make the transition from fossil fuel to renewables, there is going to be a reduction of over 60% in the cost that people put in transportation.
“If you have your car, it is envisaged that you’re going to spend about 60% less and that money that comes back to your pocket, but the emphasis at the beginning is going to be on commercial busses, for mass transit so that workers especially and those who are moving around will have a reduction in the fares that they pay.”
