The
Federal Government has issued a two-week ultimatum to the Akwa Ibom
government to fully deploy N-Power volunteers or lose its slots to other
states.
Mr. Afolabi Imoukhuede, the Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Job Creation and Youth Employment, issued the warning at
the state institutional stakeholders meeting in Uyo.
After visiting some schools where the volunteers were supposedly
deployed, the Monitoring and Evaluation (M and E) team, led by
Imoukhuede expressed displeasure with the execution of the scheme in the
state.
Accordingly, Imoukhuede requested for the schedule of posting for
the volunteers immediately as the Federal Government would no longer
continue to pay volunteers, who had yet to be deployed seven months
after being paid.
“We need to get a full deployment report in two weeks or the stipends of the volunteers will be put on hold,” he directed.
The SSA said another assessment team would visit the state at the end of the ultimatum to ensure that the right thing was done.
He also said that the relevant ministries – Agriculture, Education and Health – should ensure full monitoring of the scheme.
“I must express my gross dissatisfaction with what is happening in this state; this is horrible; it is in shambles.
“It was decided that any state which failed to send its
deployment schedule to the N-Power office before the end of March will
not be paid.
“If that was done, this will not have happened,’’ he said.
Imoukhuede said that if the state had informed the headquarters
that it did not need the volunteers other states could have taken the
slots.
He said it was unfair to the Federal Government for N-Teach
volunteers to be deployed on July 3 when they had been collecting
stipends since January.
The Permanent Secretary, Akwa Ibom Ministry of Economic
Development, Labour and Manpower Planning, Mr Effiong Peters, explained
that the state experienced challenges because the job scheme was new to
it.
Peters, who represented the Commissioner, Mr Idorenyin Udo,
however, pleaded for more time to effect the corrections and gave
assurance that the state would improve on its execution of the scheme.
“We have a large number of youth unemployment and we will make judicious use of this opportunity to calm the youths,’’ he said.
Peters also said that rather than blacklisting the state, the
Federal Government should post more volunteers as it had capacity to
absorb no fewer than 10,000 of them.
RECOMMENDED: 5 Benefits & 5 Problems Of N-Power Recruitment Scheme Every Applicant Must Know
RECOMMENDED: 5 Benefits & 5 Problems Of N-Power Recruitment Scheme Every Applicant Must Know
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that while the N-Teach had
more challenges, N-Agro and N-Health recorded a leap in implementation.
The team visited QIC Group of Schools, Awa Iman, Onna local
government and Kema Integrated Farms in the area where the proprietor,
Mrs Mkpouto Okpudo, had introduced 2 volunteers to new medicinal crops
from China.
The team also monitored progress at the Primary Health Centre, Abat
and Credo Farm in Abak where volunteers documented the outbreak of Stem
Bora attack on Maize leaves for the attention of the Federal Ministry
of Agriculture.
-NAN
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