FG's School Feeding Programme is a fraud- Fayose
Mon Jun 13, 2016 07:21:am Politics
3.2K By Buchi Obichie
Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose of the PDP, insists that the APC-led Federal Government's School Feeding Programme, must be done without demanding 40% counterpart funding from the State Governments. According to the Governor, "the Federal Government is already looking for an excuse for the impending failure of the programme by asking States to contribute 40 per cent to the scheme."
Fayose who is of the opinion that the school feeding programme was purely a contract between the APC-led Federal Government and Nigerians, asked, "Were the States consulted before the APC made the promise during the presidential campaign? How can you make a promise and win election on the basis of that promise and now expect States to help you to fulfill the promise? That to me is fraud!"
The Governor said instead of looking for who to blame for the non-fulfillment of the promises made, the APC-led Federal Government should rather blame itself for its failure to carry out a proper study on the practicability of the scheme before making promises to Nigerians.
In a statement released on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said that Ekiti State and other States in the country deserved to benefit from the programme, without assisting the Federal Government with any 40% counterpart funding.
He said; "apart from the fact that Ekiti State lacked the financial wherewithal to provide counterpart fund for such a programme, it is the duty of President Muhammadu Buhari and his APC that won election on the basis of their promise to give free meal to school pupils to fulfill the promise without placing any burden on other tiers of government."
"Nigerians should come to term with the reality that the federal government is already looking for a ready alibi for the impending failure of the school feeding programme.
"The federal government knows that 80 per cent of the States lack the financial will to be able to contribute the 40 per cent counterpart fund for the programme and the time the programme eventually fails, Nigerians will be told that it failed because States did not key in to it.
"As for us in Ekiti, we are interested in the programme because Nigeria belongs to all of us. But we won't contribute any counterpart fund because the programme is solely an electoral promise of the APC and we were never consulted before the promise was made. We don't even have the capability to make any financial contribution even if it is 10 per cent because our financial condition is such that we can't even pay workers salary."
Fayose who is of the opinion that the school feeding programme was purely a contract between the APC-led Federal Government and Nigerians, asked, "Were the States consulted before the APC made the promise during the presidential campaign? How can you make a promise and win election on the basis of that promise and now expect States to help you to fulfill the promise? That to me is fraud!"
The Governor said instead of looking for who to blame for the non-fulfillment of the promises made, the APC-led Federal Government should rather blame itself for its failure to carry out a proper study on the practicability of the scheme before making promises to Nigerians.
In a statement released on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said that Ekiti State and other States in the country deserved to benefit from the programme, without assisting the Federal Government with any 40% counterpart funding.
He said; "apart from the fact that Ekiti State lacked the financial wherewithal to provide counterpart fund for such a programme, it is the duty of President Muhammadu Buhari and his APC that won election on the basis of their promise to give free meal to school pupils to fulfill the promise without placing any burden on other tiers of government."
"Nigerians should come to term with the reality that the federal government is already looking for a ready alibi for the impending failure of the school feeding programme.
"The federal government knows that 80 per cent of the States lack the financial will to be able to contribute the 40 per cent counterpart fund for the programme and the time the programme eventually fails, Nigerians will be told that it failed because States did not key in to it.
"As for us in Ekiti, we are interested in the programme because Nigeria belongs to all of us. But we won't contribute any counterpart fund because the programme is solely an electoral promise of the APC and we were never consulted before the promise was made. We don't even have the capability to make any financial contribution even if it is 10 per cent because our financial condition is such that we can't even pay workers salary."
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