- Anambra declares free antenatal, tax exemption for low income earners
- Abia to acquire mass transit buses, shares rice
- Enugu sets up c’ttee
-
Imo yet to unveil template
Our Reporter, Abuja; Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia; Lawrence Nwimo, Awka; Ben Ezechime, Enugu
A survey by Ikengaonline has revealed different approaches adopted by various states in the South-East to cushion the biting effects of the fuel subsidy removal.
The Federal Government had approved N5 billion and five trucks of grain for every state to distribute to the poor in their states.
While some states have rolled out action plan on how to disburse the largesse, others are still generating the social register for disbursement.
ANAMBRA
Gov. Chukwuma Soludo has announced free antenatal services and free delivery services to pregnant mothers in the state’s primary health centres and general hospitals.
The Governor while unveiling his plans to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal on the people said: “Our interim response reflects the need to target the total population.”
Gov. Soludo said the subsidy removal affected all citizens including millions of unemployed and underemployed youths as well as vulnerable segments of the population.
The Governor also slashed the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) payments by transporters by 20 per cent with effect from from September 1, 2023.
He further directed that the highly vulnerable persons including vulcanizers, artisans, hawkers, wheelbarrow pushers, truck pushers, Okada drivers, and petty traders with less than 100,000 capital are all exempted from paying tax in the state.
Soludo said his Government would be distributing rice to over 300,000 households in the coming weeks across the 326 wards in Anambra.
The governor further said: “We will announce a more comprehensive medical package for our residents, especially the senior citizens and children in our 2024 budget.
“We call on the landlords to show empathy to their tenants at this challenging moment and consider easier options for rent payment.
“Transport: We have approved the repair/renovation of all serviceable Public Servants Staff Buses currently under the office of the Head of Service of Anambra State to facilitate the movement of public servants.
“We will be applying to purchase many of the CNG-fueled buses to be provided by the Federal Government for intra-state transportation. The aim is to reduce the cost of transportation within Anambra.
“We will embark immediately on the repair of existing and purchase of new water boats to ease transportation for our citizens in the riverine local governments.”
Soludo said Anambra is determined to collaborate with the Federal Government to ensure that residents of the state benefit maximally from the myriad of palliatives being rolled out by the President.
He said the state would provide an updated Social Register for Anambra residents to benefit from the Federal Government cash transfer, apply to attract a conditional grant of N50,000 to at least 1,300 nano business owners in each of the 21 LGAs of the State and support MSME and Startups in Anambra to apply for N500,000 – N1z”million soft loan each at 9% pa and repayable over 36 months- in collaboration with the Organised Private Sector in the State.
He also said the state would apply to obtain the N1bn soft loan each at 9% profit rate and repayable over five years available to 75 manufacturers in the country; and the N100 billion CBN commercial agricultural loan– the Gas conversion scheme; etc.
Gov. Soludo noted that on assumption of office, his administration had increased the workers’ salaries by 10% which according to him, took effect in January 2023.
He noted that despite the barely seven-month-old increment, his administration would pay 59,000 persons employed in the State Civil service including pensioners, a monthly flat non-taxable cash award of N12,000 from September 2023 to December 2023 to augment their monthly take-home.
He said the government will also continue to clear the backlog of gratuity and pension of the state pensioners.
However, efforts made by Ikengaonline to reach key government officials for a breakdown of the expected updated Social Register for Anambra residents proved futile.
The Commissioner for Information, Paul Nwosu; and the Chief Press Secretary, CPS to the Governor, Mr Christian Aburime, also did not pickup their calls when our Reporter tried reaching them to speak on the palliatives in the state.
ABIA
. Gives out 14 bags of rice per political ward
. Plans to acquire mass transit bus
Abia State which acknowledged the receipt of N2 billion out of the N5 billion approved by the Federal Government, said it was contemplating using part of the funds to acquire mass transit buses.
It state also said it had started the distribution of 3000 bags of rice received by the state to indigents residents.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Policies and Interventions, Rev. Father Christian Anokwuru told Ikengaonline that the the palliatives would be equitably distributed to deserving residents.
Father Anokwuru said that the state decided to distribute the grains through the political wards to ensure nobody is excluded.
According to him, each of the 184 political wards in the state will receive 14 bags of rice.
He, however, said that family members of political office holders would not benefit from the largesse.
“We got 3000 bags of grains and we started distribution on Wednesday. We are targeting the poor and the less privileged, and we decided to share them through the 184 political wards. Each of them will get 14 bags.
“Then the office of Her Excellency and that of the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Allegation got 200 bags because they have targeted people they take care of – hospitals and motherless babies homes.
“Commissioners and political office holders as well as the elected members from each Local Government Area are in charge of the distribution in their respective LGAs.”
According to him, the committee in charge of the distribution has representatives of the organised labour, and pensioners to ensure equity and fairness.
He assured that nobody, irrespective of ones political affiliation will be discriminated against.
“It’s not a party thing. Everybody irrespective of their political parties will partake in it. But the elected members and their families will not be included.”
On the contemplation to acquire mass transit buses to convey passengers at a reduced fare, the SA said: “What we got is only N2 billion but we are not going to use it to buy food stuff as that may not get to everybody. You know that civil servants and everybody should be part of it.
“So, we are proposing buying commuter buses that will be conveying people at a very cheap rate. That was every citizen will partake in the palliative.”
Meanwhile, a Rights Activist, Comrade Paul Njoku, while commenting on the development, said village Heads, President Generals of Communities and Traditional Rulers should be involved in generating the social register of beneficiaries and the distribution “to ensure it gets to the right people .”
He also said there should be video evidence of the distribution to avoid diversion by officials.
“The village Heads and community leaders who know the extremely poor in their localities should be involved in the sharing, otherwise, it will be diverted,” he said.
ENUGU:
.Govt inaugurates c’ttee
Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu State has rolled out palliatives to mitigate the harsh economic effects of the subsidy removal by the Federal Government on residents of the state.
Mbah, while inaugurating the committee said his “Government feels the pains the people are passing through.”
The Governor said parts of the committee’s reference was for the procurement, storage and distributions of relief items to the citizens.
He charged members of the committee, chaired by his Deputy, Ifeanyi Ossai, to handle the palliatives with transparency, while ensuring the speedy distributions of the items to those in dire need of them.
Mbah, who acknowledged the harsh impact the subsidy had occasioned on the people, further said the subsidy removal would immensely benefit Nigerians in the long run.
While maintaining that he shared in the pains Nigerians were going through at the moment, Mbah expressed the hope that the palliatives would help alleviate their hardships.
He also enjoined the committee to spare no time in ensuring that the palliatives were sent to “homes of those that need them the most in the state.”
He said: “You recall that few months ago the Federal Government of Nigeria removed the fuel subsidy.
“And as you know, that came with pains, shared pains, even though we believe in the long run, it will be beneficial to the country.
“The question for us now as leaders is, how do we mitigate those shared pains that our people are going to be exposed to?
“It is part of what we are doing to see how we can begin to cushion the effects of some of these pains.
“So, what we are doing now is to see how to fix the pains people are going through.
“There are also plans for short and medium term solutions, and that we are going to do in due course.
“What I am asking you to do is to ensure that this gets to the people who deserve the palliatives.”
According to him, in terms of items that will be distributed, “what is extremely important in situations like this, is speed.
“I also want to, not only be transparent, but to be seen as transparent.
“We want to show and we want the people to also see that the distribution of the palliatives is done in a transparent way, in a reputable manner, and get to the people who truly deserve them.”
Responding on behalf of the committee members, the deputy governor expressed the committee’s readiness to deliver on the assignment and work with the template given to them in ways that would reflect transparency.
He appreciated the governor for meeting the yearnings of the people, even as he assured that the committee would not disappoint in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Members of the committee are the chairman, Association of Local Governments in Nigeria (ALGON), Enugu State, and Chairman of Nkanu East Local Government Area, Hon. Okechukwu Sydney Edeh, ALGON Deputy Chairman and Chairman of Uzo Uwani Local Government Area, Hon. Chukwudi Nnadozie, Chairman of Awgu Local Area, Hon. Pedro Nwankwo abd his Enugu East counterpart, Hon. Livinus Anike.
Others are the Special Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture, Mike Ogbuekwe, Programme Manager of Enugu State Agricultural Development Programme (ENADEP), Dr. Ogbonna Onyeisi, and the head of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Chinasa Mbah.
Meanwhile, Ikengaonline investigation showed that no palliative has been sighted while no citizen has admitted receiving any palliative.
A resident of Enugu capital Mrs Ngozi Okeke said she had neither seen nor heard anything like palliative.
“There is nothing like that in Enugu State,” she said.
IMO
. Committtee still working on the template
Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, had said his administration will commence the distribution of bags of rice as palliatives to alleviate the sufferings from the removal of fuel subsidy.
Governor Uzodimma stated this at the State Secretariat on a working visit with civil servants in Owerri.
The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Uzodimma, Oguwike Nwachukwu, Monday further confirmed to Ikengaonline that the committee saddled with the palliatives is still working on the template for distribution and would be unveiled very soon.
Meanwhile, efforts to get responses from the Ebonyi State Government on how it is going about the palliatives, have been unfruitful as no Government official was willing to comment on the matter.
