January 07, (THEWILL) – A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Hon. Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has appealed to President Bola Tunubu to keep an eagle eye on how the funds allocated to different poverty alleviation programmes in the country are being spent.
Oyintiloye, who said this while speaking with newsmen on Sunday, in Osogbo, said that the passion of the President to alleviate poverty among the masses must not be allowed to be truncated by selfish individuals.
The APC chieftain said that all necessary strategies must be put in place to ensure that different poverty intervention programmes by the President have positive impacts on the lives of the less privileged Nigerians
“We have a President who is monitoring everything being done in his government and that is why we have absolute trust in him.
“We must encourage and support the President to keep eagle eye on these intervention programmes to prevent diversion.
“Since the money is meant to alleviate poverty among the masses, every necessary strategy must be in place to ensure that allocated money has positive impacts on the lives of the less privileged Nigerians,” he said
Oyintiloye, a member of the defunct APC Presidential Campaign Council, however, commended the President on the N150 billion allocated for poverty alleviation programmes in 2024.
He said that the allocated amount would go a long way in impacting positively the lives of several Nigerians.
The APC chieftain said that the money, which was to be spent under the National Poverty Reduction and Growth Strategy (NPRGS), would stabilise and improve the livelihood of the vulnerable masses.
He also noted that the money allocated under the four pillars of macro-economic stability, industrialisation, structural policies/institutional reforms and redistributive policies/programmes of government under the NPRGS was a development.
THEWILL recalls that the NPRGS was approved by the Federal Executive Council in 2021 during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari to address poverty, particularly in rural areas.
The programme is to run for 10 years (2021-2031), with an estimated implementation cost of $1.6tn at an annual average of about $161bn.
Oyintiloye, a former lawmaker, said that the allocated fund would assist in fighting poverty, and create economic growth and employment.
The APC Chieftain, who said millions of Nigerians were living in poverty, stressed that various interventions by the President to alleviate poverty must be commended.
He also commended the President for allocating N10.35 billion to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to fight poverty in the 2024 appropriation law.
“There is no doubt that the economy is not friendly and there is poverty in the land. However, the tireless effort of President Tinubu through various intervention programmes to minimise poverty is commendable.
“The President acknowledged the pains the people are passing through and that is why he and his team are working round the clock to make life more bearable for Nigerians.
“The assurance given by the President in his new message that the economic hardships occasioned by the removal of fuel subsidy will soon be over is an indication that the government is not sleeping.
“Also, the President remarks that every one of his steps and decisions taken since his assumption of office on May 29 is in the interest of the country and is a major hope that things will soon be good for Nigerians.
“We all just need to keep praying for the country and continue to play our part to support him to achieve his good plans for the upliftment of the country,” he said.
About the Author
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
