In statement on Monday, the Federal Government says that it is restructuring the famed scheme to enable it investigate the activities of the programme in the last one year with a view to ensuring transparency.
“We would like to take this opportunity to inform all N-Power program beneficiaries across the country that the program has been temporarily suspended for a detailed investigation into its operations over the last twelve months.
“This is a necessary measure to ensure that the program is being run effectively and transparently, and that all beneficiaries receive the support that they are entitled to. Since the inception of the program, a total of 960,000 people have been enrolled in NPOWER.
“This includes both NPower 1.0 and NPower 2.0 batch A and B. However, we have discovered some instances where some program beneficiaries who have left the program since 2022 are still expecting payments from the government.
“Additionally, some beneficiaries have not honored their obligation to the program by not reporting to work as required, yet they still receive monthly payments.
“To address these issues, we are conducting a thorough audit to determine the number of people in the program, those who have exited, those who are owed, how funds have been utilized, and to eliminate ghost beneficiaries.
“We are also investigating claims of those being owed for up to eight to nine months’ stipends to ensure that all valid obligations are honored. “During our audit, we discovered that some consultants are holding on to beneficiaries’ funds disbursed to them long ago, even when their contract ended in March 2023 without any renewal.
“This is unacceptable, and we will not tolerate it going forward. We are working to identify those involved, understand why the payments didn’t get to the final beneficiaries, and recall the funds to pay those owed.
“We understand that the temporary suspension of the program may cause inconvenience, but we appeal to Nigerians to understand the rationale behind it.
“We are committed to restoring the nation’s confidence in the program and making it better for all Nigerians. As part of this, we are restructuring and transforming the program to accommodate an expanded program that will reach beneficiaries aged 18-40 and new programs in various sectors.
“Transparency and accountability will be the benchmark of the expanded program. We assure all beneficiaries with genuine claims that we will resolve their cases once we complete the verification exercise and honor all valid outstanding obligations.
“Nobody will be owed. We are committed to ensuring that the N-Power program is a success, and that all beneficiaries receive the support that they deserve. We appreciate your understanding and patience during this time, and we look forward to serving Nigerians better.” The stated reads.
