Breaking: Reps stops 774,000 Special Public Works Job

The House of Representatives has, Tuesday, ordered the suspension of the 774,000 special works programme earlier scheduled to commence in January 2021.

Daily Trust https://dailytrust.com/breaking-reps-stop-take-off-of-774000-jobs reports that the House while adopting a motion of urgent Public importance sponsored by Hon. Olajide Olatubonsun, condemned the sack of the Director General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Mohammed Ladan Argungu, and advised that he be reinstated immediately.

It added that the House of Representatives also asked the Ministry of Finance not to release the funds meant for the programme until some issues that affects the integrity of the programme are sorted out.

The Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Mr Festus Keyamo had, Sunday, announced that the Special Public Works Program would commence officially on 5th January, 2021 noting that it was earlier hampered by the disagreement that ensued within the heads of the NDE.

The report contained in the Nation https://thenationonlineng.net/774-000-jobs-get-jan-5-date noted that the Director General of the Nigeria Directorate of employement, Dr Nasiru Mohammed Ladan Argungu was sacked after it was found that he resorted to a National Assembly Puppet used to get back at Mr Keyamo who had differed with the National Assembly over certain decisions on the Special Public Works Program.

Following the sack of Laden as announced by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, on Tuesday, December 8, 2020, Mr Keyamo was directed by the President to sort for an immediate replacement resulting in the appointment of Mallam Abubakar Nuhu Fikpo as the Acting Director-General of the National Directorate of Employment, NDE.

The Special Public Works Program, a 3 month program in which each the beneficiary would be paid a monthly stipend of N20,000 for doing mild activities such as clearing of gutters, clearing of market square, traffic control and other minor activities that would be assigned to them as a necessity in each of the States of the Federation has witnessed several postponements in the past.

The program which has engaged 774,000 Nigerians across the Federation is part of the President Mohammadu Buhari's palliative measures to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable Nigerians.