BY ANKELI EMMANUEL, Sokoto
The seemingly unending battle for political relevance and clientele attachment could lead to Sokoto missing out of the ongoing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 75, 000 naira Renewed Hope Conditional Cash Transfer programme, investigation has revealed.
Reports from our investigation confirmed that, part of the moves capable of denying Sokoto State beneficiaries from the ongoing Federal Government assistance to vulnerable Nigerians include the alleged replacement of the previous State Conditional Cash Transfer Unit’s (SCTU) staff with people believed to be loyalists or relatives of the current Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Sifawa.
Though efforts to obtain clearer picture of the development from the SSG as to his alleged involvement in the saga or not at the time of filing this report proved abortive as his mobile lines weren’t reachable. However, available records at our disposal shows that, the leadership of the Sokoto Conditional Cash Transfer is now fragmented into that of the National, the SSG and those of the former Special Adviser to the governor on NGOs and Donor Agencies.
Expressing his grievances over the development and it’s likely implication for the State, sources privy to the details who spoke with this medium on condition of anonymity said, Sokoto missed out of the recent orientation exercise conducted for State Cash Transfer Units by the by National Cash Transfer Officers in Abuja.
“By implication, this implies that, Sokoto stand no chance of benefiting from the all important programme of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu geared towards assisting less privileged Nigerians with 25,000 stipend monthly for 3 consecutive months.
“”The source who decried that, politicians have taken over the programme in Sokoto hence appointing their cronies, relatives, and friends to head the SCTU, added that, the earlier these crop of politicians understand that they have no right in deciding who manage the affairs of the SCTU the better for the people of the State”.
Going down memory lane on how the problems all started, the source said, “earlier this year, the former Special Adviser who was sacked by Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto dissolves the SCTU structure and appointed his family and shops attendant as staffs thinking he has the key to the NCTO funds allocated to sokoto.
“”Shortly after the Governor sacked the Special Adviser, the Secretary to the State Government, Alh Sifawa was alleged to have swiftly dissolves the SCTU structure set up by the SA and replaced them with people believed to be his relatives and friends””.
In their appeal to Governor Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto for speedy intervention to enable Sokoto benefit from the Federal Government gesture, some of the expedited beneficiaries whose date were captured in 2021 sas they have it on good authority that, the president has given green light for commencement of 75k payment to beneficiaries of RRR/CCT/PVHR across the country.
It will be recalled that, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had taken up the payment in his Renewed Hope Agenda under the Rapid Response Register (RRR) Programme which some people registered under the former President Mohammadu Buhari led regime.
