774,000 jobs: FG directs zonal, state coordinators to retrieve procured tools

The Federal Government has directed all zonal directors and state coordinators to ensure retrieval of both used and unused equipment procured for the Extended Special Public Works (ESPW) across 774 local government areas in the country.

The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, gave the directive on Tuesday during a meeting with the zonal directors and state coordinators of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) at Mararaba, Nasarawa State, saying proper account must be given.

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“Yes, they (directors) should take stock of those equipment. It is a government property, you can’t misuse government’s property. I’m an advocate of transparency and accountability, so, we shall give proper reports on that,” the minister said.

Keyamo, who is the supervising minister of the NDE, an agency that coordinated the programme, asked Director-General of the agency, Nuhu Fikpo to give them a time frame by which the equipment should be taken in stock.

The minister also appealed to some of the participants who are yet to receive their 3-month stipend to be patient, saying efforts to prevent corruption in the programme made the process cumbersome.

He said, “All I need to do since I’m the pioneer minister that started this thing, I need to lay a foundation… many other ministers will come after me, many DGs will come after him, you may be DGs tomorrow and you may improve on what we have done.

“I think we need an inventory of all you have, all the equipment as we wind down the programme, we need it, let’s have it. Local government to local government, what you have in your stock, what you received and what you have left, I want the two.

“Each and every local government, give them one week (referring to the DG) to do that. Let’s have a comprehensive report, I will give it back to Mr President. I meant the equipment we have left, both used and unused, whatever you have, let’s have them.”

The minister, who also expressed optimism that the programme will be extended beyond 2022 by making it an annual programme, charged Nigerians to stop denigrating the federal government when giving out cash to the vulnerable, saying such things also happen in the developed countries.