The Federal Government yesterday disclosed that it is owing beneficiaries of the 774,000 Special Public Works Programme (SPWP) to the tune of N7.3 billion.
However, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment Festus Keyamo promised that the full payment will be made before the end of the year.
Keyamo spoke on the situation during his ministry’s budget defence before the Senate Committee on Labour and Employment.
He appeared along with the National Directorate of Employment, (NDE) Director-General Mr. Abubakar Fikpo.
Keyamo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, blamed the delayed payment on what he called “bank issues.”
Keyamo said: “We have a balance of about N8 billion to disburse. No, it is actually N7.3 billion.”
The minister said: “Why we insisted on certain banks was because of auditing process. This is so that we have a clear audit instead of us chasing banks all over the place.
“We said the bank should use their local branches to ensure that those 1,000 people selected in that Local Government Area go to those banks within that locality.” Keyamo said his ministry had to open up the process whereby beneficiaries could use any bank in their locality.
NDE DG Fikpo said the N52 billion appropriated for the scheme was domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), adding that funds were sent to the beneficiaries through the selected commercial banks.
