The All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate of Benue South in the 2023 general elections, Comrade Daniel Onjeh, has applauded President Bola Tinubu for promptly suspending the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, over alleged corruption allegations.
He hailed him for also directing the chairman of the Economic Financial and Crimes Commission(EFCC) to conduct a thorough probe of all aspects of the financial transactions involving the ministry and its affected agencies.
In a statement on Thursday, Onjeh stated that President Tinubu had clearly demonstrated his government will not harbour any sacred cow in prosecuting the war against corruption.
He further stated that the expeditious investigation and prosecution of Edu case will go a long way in shoring-up public confidence in the current administration.
“It is truly very unfortunate that such humongous scandals are emanating from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, which is pivotal to providing short-term succour to the most impoverished members of the society, hence enabling the government to quickly win public trust, confidence, and support.
“Even Dr. Edu’s predecessor, Hajiya Sadiya Farouq, is currently being investigated by the EFCC over alleged laundering of N37billion under the tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari. These show that indeed, the ministry is a huge cesspool of corruption, which needs to be thoroughly sanitized,” Onjeh stated.
Onjeh further urged President Tinubu to remain resolute in ensuring that if found guilty, Edu and her predecessor, Hajiya Farouq, along with all their accomplices, are made to face the full wrath of the law.
“Betta Edu is the youngest member of President Tinubu’s cabinet. She’s just 37 years old. I think the scandal involving her and her ministry is not just an embarrassment, but a poor testimony of the younger generation, which has long been demanding fairer representation in Nigeria’s political space.
“Even the immediate past EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, was another very young man who grossly mismanaged a huge opportunity to project the Nigerian youths positively on the national and global stages. He was also removed from office for corruption,” Onjeh stated.
The former Chairman of the Governing Board of PRODA, Enugu also called on President Tinubu to direct a thorough investigation into the distribution of the palliatives released by the Federal Government to the states and National Assembly members during the last yuletide season.
“In line with the need to build public trust, I’m passionately appealing to President Tinubu to direct a comprehensive probe of the distribution of the palliatives released by the Federal Government to the various state governments, and especially the federal legislators, during the last festive season, to cushion the effects of the policy on fuel subsidy removal,” Onjeh stated.
Onjeh stated that his request was against the backdrop of a recent video that went viral online, wherein the House of Reps member representing Etsako Federal Constituency of Edo State, Hon. Dekeri Anamero, revealed that the Federal Government released four trailers load of rice to each House of Reps member, containing a total of 2,400 bags of rice to distribute to their constituents during the yuletide season, and the fact that in most federal constituencies across the country, the palliatives were nowhere to be found.
“It is obvious that the Federal Government had put good measures in place to mitigate the hardship imposed on poor Nigerians by the policy on fuel subsidy removal, but the handlers of these measures are sabotaging the government. If each House of Reps member got four trailers load of rice as palliatives, then it’s most likely that the senators got more. Unfortunately, no senator has come out clearly to tell us what the federal government gave to them. It is very important for the federal legislators to explain in detail, how they distributed these palliatives,” stated Onjeh
The former President of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), expressed the view that some state governors may have embarked on misplaced priorities with the financial support they received from the federal government to mitigate the effects of the policy on fuel subsidy removal.
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“Upon investigation, we may stumble across some of these palliatives in warehouses. I have strong cause to believe that some state governors and federal legislators may be hoarding the palliatives, with intent to use them to sway votes in the next election. Others may have even diverted and sold theirs.
“In my Senatorial District of Benue South for instance, I wish to particularly charge the citizens to demand what is truly theirs by holding their federal legislators to account on how they distributed the palliatives they received from the federal government during the last festive season. I suspect that our federal legislators have done a lot of disservice to my people,” Onjeh stated.
Onjeh argued that if all the palliatives released by the Federal Government to the State Government and federal legislators had been fairly and equitably distributed to the poor and needy in the society, it would have gone a long way in mitigating the economic hardship in the country occasioned by the policy on fuel subsidy removal.
He further stated that Tinubu had done what was best for the country by courageously implementing the policy of fuel subsidy removal, which was long overdue, and further putting adequate measures in place to cushion the adverse effects of the policy.
“It is now up to us, the citizens, to ensure that the palliatives released by government are distributed fairly and equitably in the society, so that the hardship which attended the fuel subsidy removal can be minimized, and the government can be focused. Otherwise, some disgruntled politicians will continue to latch onto the economic hardship in the country to incite the public against the government. Government needs the cooperation of every citizen, and the citizens must be patriotic enough to contribute enthusiastically to national development. But if they are being misinformed and misled about the federal government, it could stifle our national growth,” Onjeh observed.
Onjeh maintained that the war against corruption was not about targeting or shielding members of any political party but about fostering the unity, growth and development of the country.
He said found guilty of corruption should be dealt with in accordance with the law to serve as a deterrence to others.