The wife of Taraba governor, Mrs Anna Ishaku on Wednesday launched the payment of N5,000 stipend to 4,350 destitute in the state under the Federal Government’s Social Investment Programme.
Speaking at the inauguration of the programme in Ardo-Kola, Ishaku commended the Federal Government and the World Bank for collaborating with the state to support its poorest citizens.
She urged the officials disbursing the funds to fear God and ensure that due process was followed in the disbursement.
“I urge you to avoid sentiments in the disbursement and focus only on the poorest of the poor who are the target of this programme.
“Be mindful of the fact that if you select people who are not poor, you are leaving the state with a high burden of poor people,” Ishaku said.
The governor’s wife urged the beneficiaries not to misuse the stipend but rather to invest it wisely to improve their living conditions.
Earlier, the Head, State Cash Transfer Unit, Mr Skepra Useni-Baka, said the beneficiaries were to be given N10, 000 each as payment for two months.
Useni-Baka said subsequent payment would be N5, 000 until the expiration of the first phase of the programme in Dec. 2019.
He said the number of the beneficiaries could rise from 4,350 to 10,000 at the end of the ongoing data capture of the poorest people in the state.
The government official listed the six benefitting Local Government Areas to include Gassol, Ardo-kola, Karim-Lamido, Sardauna, Takum and Ussa.
Useni-Baka said the councils were selected as the state’s poorest areas through the Poverty World Map, while individual beneficiaries were identified by their communities in collaboration with relevant government agencies.
Also speaking, the Ardo-Kola Council Chairman, Mr Salihu Dovo, expressed his gratitude to the state and the Federal Government for deeming it fit for the council to host the inauguration of the programme.
Some of the beneficiaries, Ruqayyat Abdulkarim and Adamu Hamman-Julde, who spoke with NAN, said they would invest the stipend in groundnut oil processing and crop production respectively. – NAN.
