Labour faults N180bn palliatives, says governors will frustrate programme
The organisedlabour has knocked the federal government for releasing a n180bn palliative package to states to cushion the impact of the fuel subsidy removal. The nigerialabour congress and the trade union congress insisted that the governors could not be trusted, noting that politicians and not the poor would benefit from the n5bn largess given to each state government for disbursement to the citizens.
The federal government on thursday announced an n5bn palliative for each state of the federation and 180 trucks of rice as part of measures to assuage the pains of the subsidy removal. The policy, which led to sharp and multiple increases in fuel pump prices, has driven up the prices of goods and services, pushing millions of nigerians into poverty and worsening the socio-economic situation in the country.
But announcing the release of the palliative at the end of the 135th national economic council meeting presided over by vice president kashimshettima in abuja, the borno state governor, babaganazulum, disclosed that the n5bn was to enable the state governments to procure 100,000 bags of rice, 40,000 bags of maize and fertilizers to cushion the effect of food shortage across the country
