Coalition of Nigerian Civil Society Organizations, has called on Federal Government to cut funds budgeted for security to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, as they said that the huge votes on security has not translated into a secured nation.
The Coalition which called for increased allocation to the humanitarian Ministry under Hajiyah Sadiya Umar Farouq argued that, social security which is the major focus of the ministry, is what Nigeria requires.
Addressing a press conference in Kaduna, the Coalition led by President of Unified Nigerian Youth Forum, (UNYF) Abdulsalam Mohammed Kazeem, described the ministry as corner stone of President Muhammadu’s administration, following the pivotal role it is currently playing in cushioning the effect of COVID19 on the masses.
He lamented that, people have lost confidence in the military, as their impact was yet to be felt in tackling security challenges bedeviling the nation despite huge funds allocated to defence on yearly basis.
According to him, “there has been outcry by youth across the country, calling on the president sack the service chiefs and if the government is not ready to sack the chiefs, why not appeal to government to divert the large amount of money to the Humanitarian Ministry, since resources allotted to fight insecurity cannot be accounted for － especially now that people are claiming that some of the personnels are living above their means of income?
Kazeem who was flanked by the President Project Excel Nigerian, Comrade Eric Joseph and the speaker of Odua Youth Parliament, Comrade Abdulmajeed Oyeniyi lauded the courage of the Hajiyah Farouq to reform the N-Power program by introducing technology and creative skills acquisition components into the program.
The Coalition said such initiative under the scheme will undoubtedly build a skilled youth population that do not have to insist on white collar jobs to earn a living.
“We are meant to understand that collaborative effort is being coordinated by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster management and Social Development to enable those who would be trained to access start ups at the end of their training.
“Our dear nation is undergoing storm and stress occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic that is changing the face of human society and it’s system from health care to education and indeed the economy.
“In the middle of this challenges is a woman working on a daily basis to cushion the impact of covid19 through unprecedented humanitarian interventions, mitigate effects on human and natural disaster while also attending to the plight of the disable.
“From the Humanitarian angle, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs as an interface between the Federal Government and the citizens has responded positively with palliatives delivered to various State Governments and organisations across the country. To mention but a few, all State Governments have received trucks loads of food items for distribution to citizens. Women organisations, physically challenged groups, orphanages, religious bodies, FCT have also received similar palliatives. It is most unfortunate that many of state governments have either refused to acknowledge the Federal Governments interventions or shared the food items to politicians,” he said.