Npower Begins Payment of Stipends | Latest Npower News Today
Npower Begins Payment of Stipends | Latest Npower News Today; Fresh hope has rekindled as the House of Representatives orders the Federal Government to immediately unfreeze funds belong to the National Social Investment Program Agency (NSIPA) account for the payment of N81 billion stipends owed to 395,731 N-Power beneficiaries.
It could be recalled that batch C stream 1 of the npower program are yet to be paid owning to many reasons, among them is the financial misappropriation and the suspension of Beta Edu, the former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation over alleged disbursement of N585 million to a private account.
News reaching us states that, the House of Reps has given until Saturday (exactly 72 hours) for funds to be unfreeze and for immediate payment be made to over 395,700 batch C stream 1 beneficiaries of the program
Already these funds are already captured in the 2023 and 2024 Appropriation Bills, which are expected to elapse by December 31, 2024.
According to the H of R “Deeply worried that as a result of the suspension of accounts of the NSIPA, the N-Power program has been so negatively affected that 395,731 beneficiaries are owed outstanding stipends to the tune of N81,315, 440, 000 (Eighty-One Billion, Three Hundred and Fifteen Million, Four Hundred and Forty Thousand Naira)— a fund already captured under the 2023 and 2024 amended Appropriation Acts, which will lapse by the year ending 31st December, 2024.
“The House believes that restoring NSIPA’s account aligns with the President’s vision, ensuring that poverty alleviation efforts remain effective, efficient, and impactful, and that it is essential to act swiftly to resolve this issue. to maintain momentum towards the administration’s poverty eradication goals.
“The House resolves to urge the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to mandate the Honourable Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy to ensure that all frozen accounts of the National Social Investment Programs Agency (NSIPA) are unfrozen within 72 hours to enable the smooth recommencement of all the program of NSIPA and ensure the release of funds to NSIPA for the payment of outstanding stipends owed to 395,731 N-Power beneficiaries nationwide without further delay.”
Petition By the Human Right Lawyer-Barrister Deji Adeyanju
A human rights lawyer, Barrister Deji Adeyanju, has petitioned the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Prof. Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, over the nonpayment of N-Power beneficiaries’ one-year stipends by the Nigerian government.
They noted that though the program has been suspended by the Nigerian government, they were engaged and their services were utilized before the suspension of the program.
The beneficiaries noted that they registered for the N-Power program and were deployed to their places of primary assignment for 12 months, from October 2022 to September 2023.
According to Adeyanju “Having fulfilled all obligations and upheld their commitments to the N-power program and investing time and effort in good faith with the expectation of timely remuneration as agreed, our clients are yet to receive their monthly stipends from October 2022 to September 2023.
“Our clients are currently experiencing significant financial difficulty due to the non-payment of their stipends.
“As participants in the N-Power program, they relied on the monthly stipends to provide much-needed financial relief and stability.”
The lawyer stressed, “The programme was expressly designed to support individuals by offering a reliable income to ease financial burdens, foster skill development, and encourage sustainable livelihoods.”
“In light of the foregoing, we demand the immediate payment of all outstanding salaries accrued throughout their employment,.
This development aligns with the directive issued by President Bola Tinubu, who suspended Edu on Monday over her alleged involvement in an N585 million fraud.
More so, the coordinating minister of the Economy, Dr. Wale Edun who is also the head of the investigating panel set up to investigate the alleged misappropriation of funds in the humanitarian ministry hinted that a total of 400,000 npower beneficiaries will be paid in the second week of March 2024, as the panel concludes investigation
Dr. Wale Edu, the head of the panel, recommended that the presidency should relocate the National Social Investment Programmes (NSIP) from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to the Ministry of Finance and Coordinating Economy.
The move by Edun has ignited controversy, especially in light of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s earlier directive to investigate the activities under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, which aimed to address the nation’s current challenges.
The panel also recommended that the programs should be resumed to alleviate the sufferings of poor and vulnerable Nigerians, but that a new board under the leadership of Edun should oversee the social investment programs.
The Coordinator of the Npower program has apologized for the interruption during the payment of the 9 months’ stipends to eligible npower batch C beneficiaries, payment continues this week,
More so, all beneficiaries will be paid their 9-month stipends as the Permanent Secretary of the Humanitarian Affairs Minister, is now in charge and supervises the mopping of N119Billion NSIM funds from the ministry
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