26th May, 2015
Jethro Ibileke/Benin
Beneficiaries of the Community Services for Women and Youths Empowerment Project (CSWYEP), a branch of the SURE-P, have threatened to disrupt the inauguration of president-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari, with a planned mass protest on Thursday and Friday.
The SURE-P beneficiaries numbering about 119,000 across the country, are allegedly being owed stipends for the months of February, March, April and May by the Federal Government.
Three thousand of the beneficiaries who were selected from each state of the federation were engaged in community related services such as sweeping, cleaning of gutters, traffic control and maintenance of government properties.
Apparently due to fears that they may not be paid their accumulated stipends, the beneficiaries who have been at war with State coordinators of the programme, threatened to hold a mass protest on Thursday and Friday, the hand over day.
Commenting on the issue in Benin on Friday, Edo state chairman of the CSWYEP and the Chairman of all the state Chairmen, Mr Lucky Imasuen, said the Federal government was yet to release the funds, noting that the beneficiaries were being agitated due to the fear that the incoming government may not be interested in paying the backlog of salaries.
“We have always followed due process in the payment. The NDE handles the opening of the accounts for these beneficiaries and every month the money goes straight to their accounts. But in the past the beneficiaries have been owed three, four months and later they are paid in full.
“But as we speak the Federal Government is owing February, March, April and May, they are owing state operators also. Even the N100,000 monthly allowance of the state chairmen and other state operators have also not been paid. The Minister of Labour sent a memo, dated 18th May 2015 to all states of the Federation stating that the programme will come to an end May 29, 2015.
“Upon the receipt of the letter, the 37 of us chairmen met on Thursday May 21, at Transcorp Hilton and forwarded a letter to the Minister advising the Ministry to make a national announcement to all the beneficiaries informing them of the indebtedness and their inability to pay. As a result we held a press conference, alerting the beneficiaries all over the country about this development.
“Now the beneficiaries are planning mass protest because of the fear that the incoming government may not honour the debt. We even told the Minister to address these issues but he did not, so we are all confused because even we state coordinators are being owed,” Imasuen explained.