The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has criticised the Federal Government’s newly announced one-billion-dollar social protection programme, describing it as a panic response to Atiku Abubakar’s proposal for targeted production subsidies to reduce the cost of living.
In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party questioned the timing and funding of the programme, arguing that Nigerians had endured rising food, transport and other living costs for years before the intervention was announced.
The ADC also demanded greater accountability over the Federal Government’s claim that more than 600 billion naira had already been disbursed through cash transfers to slightly over 10 million households. It asked the government to provide evidence of beneficiaries and the measurable impact of the funds.
The party further questioned the role of First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu in launching the social intervention programme and demanded details of its funding, approval process, accounting authority and disbursement mechanism.
Atiku also raised questions over conflicting government figures on the number of households reached. He noted that the Presidency had previously reported 15 million vulnerable households, while the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs later put the figure at slightly over 10 million.
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He called on the government to provide a clear breakdown of beneficiaries, payment tranches, state-by-state distribution, failed transactions and an independent audit of the cash-transfer programme.
