By Izunna Okafor, Awka
Anambra State Governor, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo, has been advised to ensure transparency and openness in the handling and distribution of the N5 billion palliative fund and trucks of rice, grains, and fertilizers provided by the Federal Government. These resources are intended to cushion the effects of the fuel subsidy removal on the people of the state.
The call for transparency was made by the Anambra APC Media Frontier (AMF) through a press statement issued by its convenor, Mazi Chidi Orjika.
The AMF expressed concern over what they described as ‘lack of information’ from the Anambra State Government, regarding the receipt of the approved five billion naira palliative and the distribution of essential food supplies by the APC-led Federal Government of Nigeria.
While criticizing Governor Soludo’s administration for failing to update the citizens of Anambra on the status of the funds and the distribution process for the allocated resources, the AMF also raised suspicions that the state government might exploit the palliative for political gains. The group also drew parallels to previous instances where such resources intervention programs by the Federal Government were claimed and presented as welfare programs by the State Government under different guises and slogans, just to score some cheap political points.
“Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s administration has failed to update the people of Anambra on the status of these funds and the distribution of five trucks of rice(100,000 bags), 40,000 bags of grains and fertilizers due to the Anambra from the Federal Government.
“The AMF suspects that the APGA-led state government in Anambra intends to exploit this palliative for political gain, as evidenced by the previous actions of former Governor Willie Obiano. Under the guise of his “Willie is Working” toga, Obiano wrongfully claimed credit for the APC-led school feeding program, thereby undermining the efforts of our party, the APC, and former President Buhari in the state.
“We cannot afford to witness a similar scenario where the APC-provided palliative from the Federal Government is manipulated and presented as an APGA welfare program for the people of Anambra under the slogan of “Solution is Here”.
The AMF, in view of the above, ugerd Governor Soludo to demonstrate openness, accountability, and transparency in the administration of the funds, adding that the people of Anambra State deserve clear information about how the funds will be utilized and the timeline for distributing the accompanying foodstuff.
While underscoring the importance of ensuring that the palliative reaches those in genuine need, irrespective of their political affiliations, the AMF Convener, Orjika, also pledged the group’s commitment to monitoring the situation closely and holding the state government accountable.
The group concluded by encouraging all stakeholders to demand transparency and fairness in the distribution of the approved palliative by the Anambra state government.
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